BV  3785 

.M7 

C42 

1900 

^ 

Chapman, 

J. 

Wilbur  1859- 

1918. 

The  life 

and  work  of 

Dwight 

L.  Moodv 

MR.   MOODY  IN   THE  GROVE  AT  NORTHFIELD. 


THE  LIFE  AND  WORK 


■OF— 


DWIGHT  L  MOODY 


Presented  to  the  Christian  World  as 

a  ^Tribute  to  tbe  flDemor^ 

of  the  Greatest  Apostle  of  the  Age 


BY— 


Rev*  J*  Wilbur  Chapman^  D^D* 

FOR  MANY  YEARS  A  CO-WORKER  WITH   MR.  MOODY,  AND   VICE  PRESIDENT  OF  THE   BIBLE 
INSTITUTE,  OF  WHICH  MR.  D.  L.  MOODY  WAS  PRESIDENT 


Profusely  Illustrated  with  reproductions  from  Original  Photographs 
and  Rare  Old  Prints,  including  several  Authentic  Portraits  of 
Mr,   Moody,  some  of   which  are    here  published  for  the  first  time. 


UNIVERSAL  PUBLISHING  CO. 
PHIIvADELPHIA,  PA. 


Copyright,  1900 

BY 

"W.  E.  Sorri,!, 


MANY  OF  THE  ILLUSTRATIONS  IN  THIS  BOOK  ARB  »IAI>E  FROM  OOPXRIGHT 
PHOTOGRAPHS,  AND  ALL  PERSONS  ARE  WARNED  NOT  TO  REPRODTTCB  THEM 
■WITHOXTT    PERMISSION. 


PREFACE. 

NUMEROUS  invitations  have  come  to  me  recently,  to  write 
concerning  the  life  and  work  of  D,  L.  Moody,  all  of  which 
were  declined.  I  have,  however,  accepted  the  invitation  of 
the  publishers  of  this  volume  for  several  reasons. 

First.  Because  they  have  made  it  possible  for  me  in  so  doing 
to  make  a  generous  contribution  to  some  benevolent  or  educational 
work,  which  I  may  select,  my  hope  being  that  I  might  in  this 
way  contribute  to  the  work  for  which  Mr.  Moody  gave  his  life. 

Second,  Because  very  many  friends  have  urged  upon  me  the 
propriety  of  my  so  doing ;  they  presented  it  to  me  as  a  call  to  duty 
as  well  as  a  privilege,  they  told  me  it  was  a  golden  opportunity  to 
speak  of  his  life  to  many  people  who  might  not  read  the  particulars 
of  it  elsewhere,  and  I  was  convinced  that  a  subscription  book 
would  reach  thousands  of  homes,  which  might  not  otherwise  be 
influenced.  They  told  me  that  my  work  as  an  evangelist  made  it 
fitting  that  I  should  write  of  him,  who  was  known  as  the  greatest 
evangelist  of  the  generation. 

Third.  I  write  because  I  loved  him,  and  I  felt  that  I  might 
in  this  way  pay  tribute  to  the  most  consistent  Christian  man  I  have 
ever  known.  I  am  confident  that  there  has  not  been  in  these  latter 
days  a  man  who  was  more  truly  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost  than  he. 

In  view  of  all  this  my  contract  was  made  with  the  publishers^ 
and  it  was  made  before  I  knew  what  other  books  might  be  written; 
but  even  then  I  was  assured  by  those  who  knew  that  my  book  had 
a  field  of  its  own,  and  could  not  be  considered  as  in  competition 
with  any  other,  for  I  would  write  from  an  entirely  different  standpoint. 

(v) 


VI 


PREFACE 


This  book  is  sent  forth  with  the  prayer  that  God  may  make  it  a 
blessing  to  its  readers  everywhere.  It  is  my  purpose,  in  using  such 
facts  as  I  may  legitimately  claim,  to  present  Mr.  Moody,  not  only  in 
his  early  life,  and  tell  the  story  of  his  conversion,  but  to  present  him 
as  a  public  character,  as  a  man  of  God,  as  a  Prince  among  evangel- 
ists, and  give  to  my  readers  such  a  view  of  him  as  may  not  be  found 
in  other  books.  He  was  a  man  of  great  faith  in  God,  and  of  mighty 
power  in  life  and  in  prayer  ;  he  was  a  devout  student  of  the  Bible,  he 
was  a  great  preacher,  and  he  moved  men  as  it  has  been  given  few  men 
to  do.  He  reached  more  people  during  his  lifetime  than  any  other 
man,  possibly  in  the  world's  history.  He  was,  in  the  judgment  of  a 
distinguished  Scotch  Christian,  the  greatest  educator  of  his  day. 
He  had  a  victorious  life,  and  a  triumphant  death.  It  is  the  purpose 
of  this  book  to  give  a  review  of  all  this,  in  as  personal  and  practical 
a  way  as  possible. 

Letters  have  been  written  me  by  many  of  his  old  friends, 
giving  me  even  a  better  knowledge  of  him  than  my  more  than 
twenty  years'  acquaintance  could  afford. 

So  I  write  with  pleasure,  and  thanking  God  that  it  is  my  privi- 
lege. He  was  the  best  friend  I  have  ever  known,  and  whether  I 
think  of  him  as  a  preacher,  and  a  great  leader  of  men,  or  just  as  a 
humble  follower  of  God,  in  his  home  as  I  frequently  saw  him,  he 
was  the  most  thoroughly  consecrated  man,  and  the  most  Christ-like 
of  any  one  I  have  ever  known.  Among  those  who  rise  up  to  call 
him  blessed,  I  thank  God  I  stand. 


^^-y^^ 


New  York,  January,  igoo. 

N.  B.      I  desire  to  record  my  grateful  appreciation  of  assistance  rendered  me 
in  preparing   this  book  by  Rev.  Ford  C.  Ottman,  and  other  friends. 

J.  W.  C. 


LIST  OF  CHAPTERS  AND  SUBJECTS. 


Chapter.  Page. 

I.     INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 17 

Early  Acquaintance  with  Mr.  Moody — A  Most  Profound 
Influence — A  Master  in  Moving  Men — The  Power  of  God  on 
His  Work — The  Last  Picture  of  the  Evangelist — Professor 
Drummond  on  Moody. 

II.  NORTHFIELD 35 

Northfield  Not  a  Modern  Town— The  First  Settlers— The 
Second  Settlement — After  the  Revolution — The  House  in 
Which  Moody  was  Born — The  Character  of  the  Town. 

III.  MR.   MOODY'S  EARLY  LIFE       45 

The  Death  of  His  Father — Mrs.  Moody's  Struggle — Incidents 
from  Moody's  Early  Days — His  Rudimentary  Education — De- 
parture from  Home — Looking  for  Work. 

IV.  HIS    MOTHER       57 

A  Picture  Never  To  Be  Forgotten — His  Mother's  Blessing — 
Her  Puritan  Ancestry — Her  Conversion — D.  L.  Moody's 
Tribute  to  His  Mother — Verses  She  Had  Marked. 

V.      HIS  CONVERSION      74 

First  Acquaintance  With  Mr.  E.  D.  Kimball — Just  Ready  for 
the  Light — Mr.  Moody's  Probation — Admitted  To  the  Church 
— A  Changed  Life — -He  Seeks  His  Future  In  the  West. 

VL     SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK 87 

Preparation  for  Future  Work — Recruiting  For  the  Church  and 
For  Sunday  Schools — The  School  on  "  the  Sands  " — Muscu- 
lar Christianity — The  North  Market  Mission — President  Lin- 
coln's Visit — Incidents  of  the  Work. 

(vii) 


viii  LIST  OF  CHAPTERS  AND  SUBJECTS 

Chapter.  Page. 

VII.      THE    YOUNG    MEN'S    CHRISTIAN    ASSOCIATION    AND 

THE    CHICAGO   AVENUE   CHURCH loo 

First  work  with  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association — 
The  Illinois  Street  Church — Elected  President  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association — Dedication  of  the  New  Build- 
ing— A  Great  Religious  Centre — The  North  Side  Taber- 
nacle— Development  of  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church. 

VIII.     GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 109 

Moody  as  a  Commercial  Traveler — "God  will  Provide  " — He 
Gives  Up  Business — His  Means  Exhausted — Friends  Come 
with  Unsolicited  Aid — Marriage — His  Wife  and  Her  In- 
fluence— Mr.  Moody's  Family. 

IX.      MOODY  AND  SANKEY 122 

Mr.  Sankey's  First  Singing  at  a  Moody  Meeting — A  Sudden 
Proposition — A  Street  Service — Mr.  Sankey  Joins  Mr. 
Moody — The  Effect  of  Mr.  Sankey's  Singing — A  Blessed 
Partnership. 

X.     EVANGELISTIC   WORK   IN    ENGLAND,    IRELAND    AND 

SCOTLAND 139 

The  Discouraging  Outlook — Sunderland — Revival  Fire  Kin- 
dled at  Newcastle — Edinburgh — The  Work  in  Scotland  Con- 
tinued— The  Evangelists  go  to  Ireland — The  Return  to 
England — Various  Meetings — The  London  Revival. 

XL     EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  ...     158 
The  Gospel  Campaign  in  Brooklyn — The  Campaign  in  Phila- 
delphia— The  Great  Meetings  in  New  York — Glorious  Enthu- 
siasm for  the  Lord — In  Baltimore,  1878. 

XIL     MR.    MOODY    IN    TWO    WARS 175 

The  Sanitary  and  Christian  Commissions — Mr.  Moody's 
Zeal — Experiences  from  the  War — The  Revival  at  Camp 
Douglas — Work  in  the  War  with  Spain — On  Sea  and  Land — 
Striking  Illustrations — ''  God  Keep  Us  From  War.  " 

XIIL     THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD 190 

A  Blessed  Town — Northfield  Dear  to  Mr.  Moody — Mr. 
Moody's  Love  of  Nature — Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon — Rev.  F.  B. 
Meyer  at  Northfield — A  Star  In  the  Midnight  Darkness. 


LIST  OF  CHAPTERS  AND  SUBJECTS  ix 

Chapter.  Page. 

XIV.     THE  NORTHFIELD     SCHOOLS 203 

Marvelous  Educational  Work — The  Beginnings  of  Northfield 
Seminary — Three  Great  Ends  in  View — Mt.  Hermon — ^The 
Northfield  Training  School. 

XV.     THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE  AND  THE  STUDENT 

VOLUNTEERS      215 

Various  Bible  Conferences — The  Pre- Eminence  of  Northfield — 
The  Beginnings  and  the  Growth  of  the  Conference — The 
Student  Volunteers — Missionary  Interest  Awakened. 

XVL     THE  CHICAGO    BIBLE    INSTITUTE 229 

The  Need  of  the  Institution — The  Practical  Nature  of  the 
Work — Touching  Requests  for  Prayer — The  Rev.  R.  A. 
Torrey — The  Women's  Department. 

XVIL     THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 245 

The  First  Meeting — How  Mr.  Moody  Vivified  the  Work — 
The  Reports  of  Co-Workers — The  Monday  Conferences — 
Meetings  For  Children. 

XVIII.     THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 257 

Mr.  Moody  Goes  to  Kansas  City — The  Great  Convention 
Hall — Inspiring  Opening  Services — The  Beginning  of  the  End 
— Mr.  Moody  Breaks  Down — Back  to  Northfield. 

XIX.     MR.    MOODY   AS    AN    EVANGELIST 269 

D.  L.  Moody  an  Evangehst  in  the  Truest  Sense  of  the 
Word — Especially  Adapted  to  His  Work — His  Dread  of 
Notoriety — His  Views  on  Sudden  Conversion. 

XX.     HIS   BIBLE 283 

A  Book  More  Than  Precious  to  Him — The  Advice  of  Harry 
Moorehouse — Mr.  Moody's  Ideas  Concerning  the  Way  to 
Use  God's  Word. 

XXL     HIS   CO-WORKERS 289 

Ira  David  Sankey — Paul  P.  Bliss — Major  Whittle — Henry 
Varley — John  McNeill — George  C.  Stebbins' — Ferdinand 
Schiverea — H.  M.  Wharton — R.  A.  Torrey — A.  C.  Dixon — 
Henry  Drummond — G.  Campbell  Morgan — George  H.  Mac- 
gregor — F.  B.  Meyer, 


X  LIST  OF  CHAPTERS  AND  SUBJECTS 

CuAPTiiR  Page. 

XXII.     THREE    CHARACTERISTIC    SERMONS 307 

Characteristics  of  the  Three  Sermons — God's  Love — The 
Excuses  of  Men — Reaping  Whatsoever  We  Sow. 

XXIII.  HIS   BEST   ILLUSTRATIONS 346 

The  Fervor  of  His  Eloquence — "  Let  the  Lower  Lights  Be 
Burning" — "For  Charhe's  Sake" — A  Penalty  Necessary — 
CaUing  on  God — One  Year's  Record. 

XXIV.  REVIVAL    CONVENTIONS 367 

A  Typical  Convention — What  is  Evangelistic  Service  ? — We 
Want  New  Hymns — Apt  Replies  to  Questions. 

XXV.     HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 376 

A  Characteristic  Bible  Reading — Helpful  Auxiliaries  to  Bible 
Study — Jesus  the  Key  to  the  New  Testament — The  Four 
Gospels — Six  Things  Worth  Knowing — How  Christ  Dealt 
With  Sinners. 

XXVL     HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL   TRUTHS 396 

His  View  Concerning  the  Word  of  God — The  Second  Coming 
of  Christ — The  Work  of  the  Holy  Ghost — A  Blessed  Experi- 


XXVII.     THE    FUNERAL 414 

Mr.  Moody's  Last  Moments — A  Triumphant  Passing  Away — 
Funeral  Services — Addresses  by  Dr.  Scofield,  Dr.  Weston, 
Dr.  Chapman,  Bishop  Mallalieu,  Mr.  Torrey,  and  others. 

XXVIII.     ROUNDTOP,   WHERE     MR.  MOODY  LOVED    TO  SPEAK 

AND  WHERE  HE  WAS  BURIED 439 

Mr.  Moody's  Remains  Taken  to  Roundtop — A  Place  of 
Blessing — Roundtop  Particularly  Identified  With  Mr.  Moody. 

XXIX.     MEMORIAL  SERVICES 456 

The  Great  Meeting  in   New  York — Impressive  Addresses — 
Estimates  of  Mr.  Moody  by  Dr.  Greer,   Mr.  John  R.  Mott, 
Mr.  Cutting,   Dr.  Buckley,   and  Others  who  Knew  and  Loved 
Him. 


LIST  OF  CHAPTERS  AND  SUBJECTS  xi 

Chapter.  Pack. 

XXX.     APPRECIATIONS  BY  EMINENT  FRIENDS ".435 

Testimony  to  Mr.  Moody's  Wonderful  Personality — The  Opin- 
ions of  Prominent  Men  who  Knew  Him  and  His  Work — The 
Universal  Regard  in  Which  He  Was  Held. 

XXXI.      EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER     ....     503 
Important  Tributes  from  the  Secular  and  Rehgious  Press — All 
Men    Eager   to    Admit    Mr.    Moody's    Greatness — What  He 
Accomplished  for  the  Betterment  of  Mankind. 

XXXII.     THE  PERSONAL   SIDE    OF    MR.  MOODY 517 

Personal  Characteristics — His  Hold  Upon  His  Friends — His 
Charming  Social  Side — His  Kindliness,  Modesty  and  Unself- 
ishness. 

XXXIIL     PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OF  D.  L.   MOODY    ....     537 
By  Rev.  H.  M.  Wharton,  D.D.    An  Estimate  of  Mr.  Moody, 
based  on  intimate  association  with  him  and  long  knowledge 
of  his  work. 

XXXIV.     A  MONTH  WITH  MR.    MOODY    IN  CHICAGO 546 

By  Rev.  H.  M.  Wharton,  D.D.  Mr.  Moody  as  He  Appeared 
to  one  of  his  Prominent  Co-Workers  during  the  World's  Fair 
Campaign. 


The  Greatness  of  Mr.  Moody 


By  Henry  Drummond 


WERE  one  asked  what  on  the  human  side  were  the  effective  ' 
ingredients  in  Mr.  Moody's  sermons,  one  would  find  the 
answer  difficult.  Probably  the  foremost  is  the  tremen- 
dous conviction  with  which  they  are  uttered.  Next  to  that  are 
their  point  and  direction.  Every  blow  is  straight  from  the  shoulder 
and  every  stroke  tells.  Whatever  canons  they  violate,  whatever 
faults  the  critics  may  find  with  their  art,  their  rhetoric,  or  even 
with  their  theology,  as  appeals  to  the  people  they  do  their  work 
with  extraordinary  power. 

If  eloquence  is  measured  by  Its  effect  upon  an  audience  and 
not  by  its  balanced  sentences  and  cumulative  periods,  then  there  is 
eloquence  of  the  highest  order.  In  sheer  persuasiveness,  Mr. 
Moody's  has  few  equals,  and,  rugged  as  his  preaching  may  seem  to 
some,  there  is  in  it  a  pathos  of  a  quality  which  few  orators  have 
ever  reached,  and  appealing  tenderness  which  not  only  wholly 
redeems  it,  but  raises  it  not  unseldom  almost  to  sublimity. 

In  largeness  of  heart,  in  breadth  of  view,  in  single-eyedness 
and  humility,  in  teachableness  and  self-obliteration,  in  sheer  good- 
ness and  love,  none  can  stand  beside  him. 


(xiii) 


The  Last  of  the  Great  Group 

By  Newell  Dwight  Hillis. 

WHEN  long  time  hath  passed,  some  historian,  recalling  the 
great  epochs  and  religious  teachers  of  our  century,  will 
say,  "  There  were  four  men  sent  forth  by  God ;  their 
names  Charles  Spurgeon,  Phillips  Brooks,  Henry  Ward  Beecher 
and  Dwight  L.  Moody."  Each  was  a  herald  of  good  tidings; 
each  was  a  prophet  of  a  new  social  and  religious  order.  God 
girded  each  of  these  prophets  for  his  task,  and  taught  him  how  to 
"  dip  his  sword  in  Heaven." 

In  characterizing  the  message  of  these  men  we  say  that  Spur- 
geon was  expositional,  Phillips  Brooks  devotional,  Henry  Ward 
Beecher  prophetic  and  philosophical,  while  Dwight  L.  Moody 
was  a  herald  rather  than  teacher,  addressing  himself  to  the  com- 
mon people — the  unchurched  multitudes.  The  symbol  of  the 
great  English  preacher  is  a  lighted  lamp,  the  symbol  of  Brooks  a 
flaming  heart,  the  symbol  of  Beecher  an  orchestra  of  many  instru- 
ments, while  Mr.  Moody  was  a  trumpet,  sounding  the  advance, 
sometimes  through  inspiration  and  sometimes  through  alarm. 

The  first  three  were  commanders,  each  over  his  regiment,  and 
worked  from  fixed  center,  but  the  evangelist  was  the  leader  of  a 
flying  band  who  went  everywhither  into  the  enemy's  country,  seek- 
ing conquests  of  peace  and  righteousness.  Be  the  reasons  what 
they  may,  the  common  people  gladly  heard  the  great  evangelist. 


(xiv) 


Moody  as  a  Prophet. 

By  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer,  B.  A. 

GOD'S  best  gifts  to  man  are  men.  He  is  always  sending 
forth  men.  When  the  time  is  ripe  for  a  man,  God 
sends  him  forth.  When  for  a  moment  the  race  seems  to  be 
halting  in  its  true  progress,  then,  probably  from  the  ranks  of 
the  common  people,  rises  he  who  leads  a  new  advance.  "  There 
came  a  man  sent  from  God."  Yes,  God  constantly  sends  men. 
But  the  greatest  gift  is  a  prophet. 

When  New  Testament  times  dawned  the  touch  of  the  priest 
had  lost  its  power  forever,  but  around  those  times  prophets  have 
gathered — -John  the  Baptist,  Savonarola,  Luther,  Latimer,  White- 
field,  Wesley,  Spurgeon,  and  it  is  not  fulsome  flattery  which  in- 
cludes the  name  of  Moody. 

What  is  a  Prophet  ? 

A   prophet  is  one  who  sees  God's  truth  by   a  distinct  vision  ; 

who   speaks    as   one  upon   whose  eyeballs    has  burned   the  Light 

of  the  Eternal,  and,  thus  speaking,  compels  the  crowd  to  listen  ; 

he   is  one  whose   strong,    elevated    character  is   a  witness  to   the 

truth  in  which  he   believes   and  which    he    declares.      These    are 

the  three  necessary  conditions  of  a  prophet.    It  matters  not  in  what 

diction  he  speaks,  whether  in  the  rough,  unpolished  tongue  of  the 

people,    or    in    the  choice,  well-balanced  language  of  the   schools. 

A    man    who    possesses    those    three    qualities    is  a  prophet,    and 

has  a  mission  from  God.      Such  a  one  was  Moody. 

(xv) 


xvi  MOODY  AS  A  PROPHET 

There  were  certain  traits  in  the  prophets  and  in  John  the  Bap- 
tist which  we  recognize  also  for  the  most  part  in  Moody.  For  in- 
stance, the  prophet  generally  rises  from  the  ranks  of  the  people. 
Again  and  again  from  the  common  people  have  been  supplied  the 
leaders  of  men.  Those  in  the  upper  grades  of  society,  from  whom 
we  should  naturally  expect  the  most,  would  seem  very  largely  to 
have  worn  themselves  out  with  luxury  and  self-indulgences.  His- 
tory is  full  of  the  stories  of  prophets  who  came  from  a  lowly  stock. 
-And  Moody  was  the  child  of  humble  New  England  parents.  His 
father  died  early,  and  Moody's  boyhood  was  spent  face  to  face  with 
privation.  He  had  to  fight  his  way  from  the  ranks  of  the  people. 
We  have  to  thank  this  fact  for  the  strong  common  sense  which  dis- 
tinguished  him.  Moody  had  the  practical  insight  to  humor  which 
belong  especially  to  those  who  toil  upon  the  land.  And  this  man, 
with  his  close  relationship  to  the  life  of  the  people,  came  to  be  able 
to  hold  ten  thousand  of  them  spellbound  in  the  grasp  of  his  power- 
ful influence. 

Taught  of  God's  Spirit 

Again,  it  will  generally  be  found  that  a  prophet  is  not 
learned  in  the  teaching  of  the  schools.  John  the  Baptist  received 
his  college  education  in  the  desert,  amid  the  elements  of  Nature. 
These  were  his  great  kindergarten,  in  which  his  soul  was  prepared 
for  its  great  work.  When  men  go  to  the  conventional  colleges  they 
learn  to  measure  their  language  with  the  nicest  accurateness. 
;Was  Moody's  lack  in  this  and  in  similar  directions  a  loss  to  him? 
Nay,  he  was  taught  of  God's  Spirit.  He  bathed  himself  in  a  book, 
.in  that  one  volume  which  is  in  itself  a  library,  the  intimate  knowl- 
edge of  which  is  alone  sufficient  to  make  men  cultured. 

There  is  often  a  brusqueness  about  the  prophet.  We  see  that 
in  John  the  Baptist.  He  was  not  a  man  to  be  found  in  king's 
courts.     Without    veneer,   brusque,   gaunt,   strong,    he    lived    and 


MOODY  AS  A  PROPHET  xvii 

labored.  Moody  partook  the  same  characteristics.  It  is  not 
unlikely,  however,  that  he  assumed  a  certain  attitude  of  brusque- 
ness  because  he  felt  afraid  of  being  made  an  idol  of  the  people. 
Having  seen  the  evils  of  popularity,  he  wished  to  avoid  them.  To 
timid,  friendless  women,  to  individual  sinners,  he  was  wonderfully 
gentle  and  kind  in  manner.  Amongst  his  grandchildren,  whose 
simple  playmate  he  became,  he  was  tenderness  itself.  The  brusque- 
ness  belonged  only  to  the  rind,  to  the  character  which  had  known 
deep  experiences. 

Moody  had  very  distinct  experiences.  The  manner  of  his 
conversion  led  him  to  expect  immediate  decisions  in  the  souls  of 
others.  Under  his  Sunday  school  teacher's  influence  he  had  been 
led  on  the  moment  to  give  himself  to  Christ,  and  he  looked  for 
others  to  do  nothing  less,  nothing  more  tardy. 

His  Baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost 

Again,  the  prophet  has  known  a  touch  of  fire.  Mr.  Moody 
once  told  me  that  a  number  of  poor  women  in  Chicago  who  heard 
him  speak  said  one  day,  "  You  are  good  ;  but  there  is  something 
you  have  not  got;  we  are  praying  that  it  may  come."  Later,  one 
afternoon  in  New  York,  he  was  walking  along,  when  an  irresistible 
impulse  came  upon  him  to  be  alone.  He  looked  around.  Where 
could  he  go?  What  was  to  be  done?  He  remembered  a  friend 
living  not  far  away.  So  into  his  house  he  rushed,  and  demanded 
a  room  where  he  could  be  alone.  There  he  remained  several 
hours,  and  there  he  received  the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
When  he  returned  to  Chicago  and  began  to  speak,  the  godly 
women  who  had  spoken  to  him  beforetime  said,  "You  have  it 
now."  And  the  wonderful  power  which  Moody  henceforward 
exercised  over  his  fellow-men  he  owed  to  that  touch  of  fire.  It 
never  left  him.      People  were  attracted.     What  happened  when  he 


xviii  MOODY  AS  A  PROPHET 

visited  England,  happened  wherever  he  went.  The  prophet  had 
the  real  ring  about  him.      He  dealt  with  things  as  they  are. 

There  was  genuine  greatness  of  heart  in   Mr.  Moody,  and  it 
constantly  triumphed  over  sect  differences.      When  his  mother  died 
three  years  ago  the  Roman  Catholics  of  the  neighborhood  asked 
that  they  might  be  pallbearers. 
\  A  prophet,  of  course,  has   his  message.      His  office  is  not  so 

much  that  of  teacher  or  preacher  as  of  herald.  He  sounds  the 
alarm  and  cries  "fire."  With  Moody  it  was  not  repentance  because 
of  hell-fire.  The  love  of  God  was  his  proclamation.  And  how  he 
could  speak  about  that  !  I  have  seen  him  break  down,  as  with 
trembling  voice  and  tears  in  his  eyes  he  pleaded  with  men  for  the 
love  of  God's  sake  to  be  reconciled  with  Him.  A  prophet  is  hum- 
ble. In  this  respect  Moody  was  true  to  the  type.  He  seemed  the 
one  person  who  did  not  know  there  was  a  Moody.  He  did  not 
know  half  so  much  about  himself  as  the  newspapers  told.  This  is 
true  greatness. 

And  now  he  has  gone.  My  world  is  very  much  thinner.  A 
gfreat  tree  has  fallen.  One  more  throbbingf  voice  is  silent. 
Spurgeon  is  gone.  Moody  is  gone.  The  voices  are  dying.  Listen 
to-day  to  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God. 


REV.  J.  WILBUR  CHAPMAN,  D.D. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Introductory  Chapter 

^^  T  DO  not  know  whether  I  dare  say  what  I  am  now  about  to 
J[  speak  to  you.  I  asked  a  brother  minister  this  afternoon, 
and  he  would  not  take  the  responsibility,  but  after  thinking 
it  over  I  will  say  it.  I  believe  if  Christ  had  actually  lived  in  the 
body  of  our  dear  brother  and  had  been  subject  to  the  same  limita- 
tions that  met  him,  he  would  have  filled  up  his  life  much  as  D.  L. 
Moody  filled  up  his,  and  for  that  reason  I  say,  after  the  most  care- 
ful thought,  I  had  rather  be  D.  L.  Moody  lying  dead  in  his  coffin 
than  to  be  the  greatest  man  alive  in  the  world  to-day„"  This 
remarkable  tribute  was  paid  by  Dr.  H.  G.  Weston,  of  the  Crozier 
Theological  Seminary,  Chester,  Pa.,  and  when  he  had  finished  it, 
there  was  a  wave  of  sympathetic  expression  and  approval  which 
swept  over  the  entire  audience,  and  his  remarkable  utterance  was 
greeted  with  quiet  Amens  and  suppressed  sobs. 

I  question  if  this  generation  has  known  a  man  who  was  more 
Christlike  than  D.  L.  Moody.  That  he  sometimes  made  mistakes 
his  best  friends  will  allow,  but  that  he  was  ready  to  undo  these  mis- 
takes when  they  were  made,  and  to  make  acknowledgment  when 
that  was  necessary,  all  who  knew  him  well  will  testify. 

Early  Acquaintance  With  Mr.   Moody 

I  have  heard  his  name  since  infancy.  F^rst  of  all  from  my 
mother's  lips  when  I  was  a  child.  For  it  was  at  that  time  his  name 
was    being    spoken    with    approval    by    ministers    and    Christian 

2  C17) 


i8  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

workers,  and  also  at  that  time  that  the  newspapers  were  making 
frequent  reference  to  his  increasing  usefulness  and  power. 

I  am  naturally  a  hero  worshipper.  There  are  certain  names 
that  have  always  stirred  me  and  certain  personalities  that  have 
ever  been  my  inspiration.  No  name,  however,  has  ever  been  more 
sacred  among  the  names  of  men  than  that  of  Moody,  and  no  char- 
acter has  ever  so  taken  hold  of  my  very  being,  as  his. 

When  first  I  felt  called  to  preach  the  Gospel,  I  determined 
there  were  certain  men  whom  I  must  hear.  In  my  list  of  names  I 
had  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  and  I  shall  ever  recall  with  grateful  appre- 
ciation the  opportunity  of  hearing  him  in  the  Plymouth  Church 
when  his  text  was  :  "  Except  your  righteousness  exceed  the  righ- 
teousness of  the  scribes  and  Pharisees  ye  shall  in  no  wise  enter 
into  the  kingdom."  And  when  his  prayer  reminded  me  of  nothing 
so  much  as  the  running  of  a  mountain  stream  over  the  rocks  as  it 
hurried  on  its  way  to  the  sea,  I  came  away  feeling  that  I  had 
had  a  great  privilege,  not  only  in  hearing  Mr.  Beecher  preach,  but 
in  being  lifted  up  to  Heaven  by  his  prayer. 

A  Most  Profound  Influence 

The  second  name  in  importance  on  my  list  was  that  of  Dr. 
John  Hall,  and  possibly  the  deepest  impression  of  my  life  was 
made,  when  he  was  preaching  from  the  text  in  I.  Timothy  iv  :  6: 
"Thou  shalt  be  a  good  minister  of  Jesus  Christ."  He  closed  his 
sermon  by  leaning  over  the  pulpit  and  saying,  "  I  have  only  one 
supreme  ambition,  and  that  is  that  I  might  close  my  ministry  here 
and  have  you  say  concerning  me,  "  he  was  a  good  minister  of  the 

Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,"  and  I  came  away  saying  that  I  had  had 

* 
such  an  uplift  as  rarely  comes  to  a  young  minister. 

Written  in  large  letters  on  my  list  was  the  name  of  Charles 

H.  Spurgeon,  and  it  has  ever  been  the  regret  of  my  ministry  that 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  19 

before  it  was  given  to  me  to  cross  the  sea,  God  had  called  him  to 
cross  over  into  the  better  land. 

But  of  all  the  names  written,  none  stood  out  so  plainly  as 
that  of  D.  L.  Moody.  I  had  somehow  made  up  my  mind  from 
what  I  had  heard  of  him,  and  from  what  the  newspapers  had  printed 
of  his  work,  that  he  was  to  move  me  more  mightily  than  any  other 
man  in  the  world,  and  I  bear  glad  testimony  to  the  fact  that  the 
after-years  proved  my  expectation  to  be  true.  He  exercised  the 
most  profound  influence  over  me  from  the  very  first  moment  I  met 
him,  an  influence  which  only  increased  with  the  passing  years,  and 
still  abides,  although  he  is  in  the  presence  of  his  God. 

At  The   World's'  Fair  Meetings  in  Chicago 

In  the  providence  of  God  I  was  frequently  with  him  in  ser- 
vices ;  notably,  at  the  World's  Fair  Meetings  in  Chicago,  when  he 
was  not  only  the  genial  host  of  the  workers  with  whom  he  was  sur- 
rounded, but  was  the  leader  of  a  great  force  of  Christian  ministers 
and  laymen,  commanding  the  city  for  God  with  as  great  genius  as 
ever  an  officer  commanded  and  led  his  soldiers  against  the  enemy 
on  the  field  of  battle. 

He  invited  me  to  be  with  him  in  Pittsburg  in  1898,  and  one 
of  the  most  tender  memories  of  my  life  is  that  which  I  have  of 
him  in  connection  with  the  meetings  held  in  the  Exposition  Building. 

I  saw  him  in  frequent  conferences  when  I  was  pastor  in  Phila- 
delphia, when  his  great  heart  yearned  over  the  cities  in  the  East, 
much  as  did  the  heart  of  the  Master  when  looking  down  upon  the 
City  of  his  love,  he  said,  "O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem  !" 

I  was  with  him  in  the  special  campaign  in  New  York,  when 
from  early  morning  till  late  at  night  in  the  Grand  Central  Palace, 
he  not  only  preached  himself,  but  had  called  to  his  assistance 
workers  and  friends  from  many  other  cities. 


20  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

It  was  my  great  privilege  to  be  frequently  at  Northfield 
where  Mr.  Moody  showed  not  only  his  great  heart,  but  his  great 
power  as  a  leader  as  in  no  other  place  in  the  country,  and  inti- 
mately as  I  knew  him,  and  devotedly  as  I  loved  him,  I  never  came 
in  contact  v/ith  him  that  my  heart  did  not  beat  a  little  faster  and 
my  pulses  throb  a  little  more  quickly. 

Moody  Conducting  Meetings 
I  used  to  love  to  watch  him  in  the  meetings  he  conducted. 

o 

His  eyes  were  always  open  to  take  in  the  most  minute  detail  of 
the  services,  and  things  to  which  other  men  would  be  blind  he  was 
ever  seeing.  I  frequently  almost  lost  the  rnessage  he  was  giving 
in  my  admiration  for  the  messenger.  While  he  was  sitting  in  the 
first  part  of  the  service,  he  would  make  a  dive  into  his  pocket,  take 
out  a  little  piece  of  paper  and  write  a  message  to  some  of  his  work- 
ers, put  down  an  illustration  or  record  something  which  was  to  be 
the  seed  thought  for  a  future  sermon.  Sometimes  you  would 
scarcely  think  he  was  noticing  what  was  going  on,  and  suddenly  he 
would  be  on  his  feet  announcing  a  hymn,  and  while  he  could  not 
sing  himself,  yet  he  was  superb  in  his  power  to  make  other  people 
sing-,  "  Isn't  that  magnificent  "  he  would  say,  as  voice  after  voice 
took  up  the  great  chorus.  "  Now  the  galleries  sing,  that  is  my 
choir  up  in  the  gallery,  now  show  the  people  what  you  can  do  ; 
now  the  men,  now  the  women,  now  altogether,"  until  it  would 
seem  as  if  greater  singing  one  had  never  heard  in  all  his  life. 

He  was  ever  on  the  alert  in  every  service.  I  have  heard  him 
many  times  relate,  however,  one  instance  to  the  contrary,  when 
George  O.  Barnes  was  being  greatly  used  in  evangelistic  effort. 
Mr.  Moody  had  taken  him  around  to  several  appointments,  and 
the  evening  service  came  so  quickly  upon  them  that  they  did  not 
have  time  to  eat  anything  except  a  hasty  lunch  which  they  took 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 


21 


somewhere  together,  the  principal  article  of  which  Mr.  Moody  said 
was  bologna.  When  Mr.  Barnes  arose  to  speak  in  the  evening,  the 
room  was  very  hot,  and  Mr.  Moody  said  that  'that,  together  with 
the  lunch  he  had  taken,  made  him  very  drowsy;  he  pinched  himself 
to  keep  awake,  but  at  last  he  fell  asleep.  Mr.  Barnes  did  every- 
thing he  could  to  arouse  him,  and  when  he  had  failed  he  stopped 
preaching,  and  Mr.  Moody  said,  turned  to  his  audience  to  say, 
"This  is  the  first  time  I  have  ever  seen  D.  L.  Moody  defeated,  but 
the  devil  and  bologna  sausage  seem  to  have  gotten  the  best  of 
him."  I  have  heard  him  tell  it  over  and  over.  No  one  enjoyed  a 
joke  better  than  himself,  even  though  he  might  be  the  subject 
of  it. 

He  seemed  to  know  what  the  people  wanted  and  what 
they  would  take,  and  the  things  that  other  men  would  turn  awav 
from  he  would  present  with  great  power.  I  remember  a  meeting  in 
Albany,  New  York,  years  ago,  when  short  conferences  were  being 
held  through  the  country  by  Mr.  Moody  and  his  co-workers, 
when  he  turned  to  Dr.  Darling,  then  of  Schenectady,  now  of  Auburn 
Seminary,  and  said,  "  Doctor,  tell  them  the  story  you  told  me  this 
morning  ;  "  and  then  the  distinguished  preacher  gave  an  illustration 
which  he  might  have  thought  too  simple  to  use  in  a  crowded  assem- 
blage, but  which  swayed  the  great  audience. 

A  Master  in  Moving  Men 

He  was  a  master  in  moving  men.  I  can  shut  my  eyes  now 
and  see  him,  with  tears  rolling  down  his  face,  as  he  plead  with  men 
to  turn  to  Christ ;  sobs  breaking  his  utterance  as  he  told  of  the 
love  of  God  to  men  and  of  God's  special  love  to  himself.  He  was 
as  sincere  a  man  as  ever  stood  on  the  platform  to  preach,  and  it 
was  for  this  reason  that  people  of  all  classes  and  grades  believed  in 
him.     When  the  New  York  Dailies  came  out  with  great  headlines 


22  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

saying,  "  Moody  is  dead,"  a  Jew  in  one  of  the  courts  turned  to  a 
friend  of  mine  to  say,  "  He  was  a  good  man,"  and  when  his  death 
was  being  discussed  in  one  of  the  great  chibs  in  the  City  of  New 
York,  a  man  who  was  an  infidel  said,  "  I  think  he  was  the  best 
man  this  generation  has  known,  and  if  I  should  ever  be  a  Christian 
I  should  want  to  be  one  just  like  Moody,  if  I  could." 

There  were  times  when  he  was  more  than  eloquent,  when 
every  gesture  was  a  sermon.  Who  can  ever  forget  his  description 
of  Elijah  going  up  by  a  whirlwind  into  heaven.  When  carried  away 
by  the  power  of  his  own  emotions,  he  lifted  his  hands  while  his  audi- 
ence seemed  to  be  lifted  with  him,  and  raising  them  higher  and  higher, 
1  can  hear  him  say  the  words,  "  Up,  up,  up,  I  can  see  Elijah  going, 
and  I  see  heaven  open  to  receive  him  as  he  rises."  The  impres- 
sion on  his  audience  was  profound. 

A  Blessing  To  Have  Known  Him 

To  have  known  him  at  all  was  a  blessing,  but  to  have  known 
him  with  any  degree  of  intimacy  was  one  of  the  rarest  privileges 
of  a  minister's  life.  I  would  not  say  that  I  knew  him  better  than 
other  men,  for  hundreds  knew  him  far  more  intimately  and  for 
a  far  longer  time  than  I  ;  but  if  love,  since  I  have  known  him,  can 
make  up  for  the  years  in  which  I  was  not  acquainted  with  him, 
then  these  recent  years  with  their  increasing  admiration  and  love 
will  give  me  the  right  to  speak  and  write.  Dr.  Pierson  says  concern- 
ing George  Miiller,  "  A  human  life  filled  with  the  presence  and 
power  of  God,  is  one  of  God's  choicest  gifts  to  His  church  and  to 
the  world." 

"Things  which  are  unseen  and  eternal  seem,  to  the  carnal  man, 
distant  and  indistinct,  while  what  is  seen  and  temporal  is  vivid  and 
real.  Practically,  any  object  in  nature  that  can  be  seen  or  felt  is 
thus  more  real  and  actual  to  most  men  than  the  living  God.     Every 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  23 

man  who  walks  with  God,  and  finds  Him  a  present  help  in  every 
time  of  need  ;  who  puts  His  promises  to  the  practical  proof  and 
verifies  them  in  actual  experience  ;  every  believer  who  with  the 
key  of  faith  unlocks  God's  mysteries,  and  with  the  key  of  prayer 
unlocks  God's  treasuries,  thus  furnishes  to  the  race  a  demonstra- 
tion and  an  illustration  of  the  fact  that  '  He  is  a  Rewarder  of 
them  that  diligently  seek  Him.' 

"  Death   Has  no  Terror  to  Me  " 

"George  Miiller  was  such  an  argument  and  example  incarnated 
in  human  flesh.  He  was  a  man  of  like  passions  as  we  are,  and 
tempted  in  all  points  like  as  we  are,  but  who  believed  God  and 
was  established  by  believing  ;  who  prayed  earnestly  that  he  might 
live  a  life  and  do  a  work  which  should  be  a  convincing  proof  that 
God  hears  prayer  and  that  it  is  safe  to  trust  Him  at  all  times ;  and 
who  has  furnished  just  such  a  witness  as  he  desired  Like  Enoch, 
he  truly  walked  with  God,  and  had  abundant  testimony  borne  to 
him  that  he  pleased  God.  And  when,  on  the  tenth  day  of  March, 
1898,  it  was  told  us  of  George  Miiller  that  'he  was  not,'  we  knew 
'  God  had  taken  him  ;'  it  seemed  more  like  a  translation  than 
death,"  the  same  thing  can  be  said  of  Mr.  Moody.  He  used  to 
say,  "  Sometime  you  will  pick  up  a  paper  and  will  read  of  D.  L. 
Moody's  death  ;  don't  believe  a  word  of  it ;  I  may  be  asleep,  but  I 
I  shall  not  be  dead  ;  death  has  no  terror  to  me,"  and  his  words 
were  a  prophecy  of  his  triumphant  passing  into  the  presence  of 
God.  The  telegram  written  by  Mr.  A.  P.  Fitt,  his  son-in-law,  to  Mr. 
Louis   Klopsch,  of  the  Christian  Herald,  is  a  confirmation  of  this  : 

"East  Northfield,   Mass.,   Dec.    22. 
*'  Mr.  Moody  had  a  triumphant  entry  into  Heaven  at  noon. 
"As  early  as  8  o'clock,   a.  m.,   he  said  :    '  Earth  is  receding  and  Heaven  is 
opening.      God  is  calling  me.' 


24  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

"He  was  perfectly  conscious  to  the  last,  and  showed  the  same  courage  and 
faith,  unselfishness  and  thought  for  his  wife  and  children  and  his  schools  as 
always. 

"  His  doctor  says  it  was  'a  pure  case  of  heart  failure,  due  to  absolute  loss  of 
bodily  strength. ' 

''  In  leaving  us  he  gave  unflinching  testimony  to  the  truths  he  taught. 

A.    P.    FiTT.  " 

A  Wonderful  Life 

His  was  a  wonderful  life.  In  one  of  Tissot's  pictures  there  is 
seen  a  great  multitude  of  people  lame  and  halt  and  blind  in  the 
way  along  which  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is  to  come,  and  then  there  is  a 
view  representing  him  passing,  and  as  he  moves  along,  only  those 
before  Him  are  sick,  while  all  behind  him  are  well.  This  was  Mr. 
Moody's  life.  All  that  was  behind  him  felt  the  touch  of  his  power. 
The  Chicago  Bible  Institute  has  become  an  object  lesson  to  Chris- 
tian workers  everywhere.  Northfield  is  a  center  of  influence  forth 
from  which  streams  of  blessing  flow  to  the  very  ends  of  the  earth. 
England,  Ireland  and  Scotland  have  felt  the  touch  of  his  conse- 
crated life,  and  millions  of  lives  the  world  over  thank  God  that  he 
ever  lived,  those  who  were  lame,  halt  and  blind  spiritually  now  leap 
and  praise  God  that  D.  L.  Moody  ever  lived. 

His  home  life,  in  the  testimony  of  those  who  knew  it  best, 
was  most  beautiful.  On  that  memorable  day  when  his  body  was 
lying  in  the  casket  in  the  Congregational  Church  in  Northfield,  when 
other  speakers  had  paid  their  tribute  to  his  distinguished  father, 
Mr.  William  R.  Moody,  his  eldest  son,  rose  to  say  :  "  As  a  son  I 
want  to  say  a  few  words  of  him  as  a  father.  We  have  heard  from 
his  pastor,  his  associates  and  friends,  and  he  was  just  as  true  a 
father.  I  don't  think  he  showed  up  in  any  way  better  than  when, 
on  one  or  two  occasions,  in  dealing  with  us  as  children,  with  his 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  25 

impulsive  nature,  he  spoke  rather  sharply.  We  have  known  him 
to  come  to  us  and  say  :  '  My  children,  my  son,  my  daughter,  I 
spoke  quickly  ;  I  did  wrong ;  I  want  you  to  forgive  me.'  That 
was  D.   L.   Moody  as  a  father. 

"  He  was  not  yearning  to  go  ;  he  loved  his  work.  Life  was 
very  attractive  ;  it  seems  as  though  on  that  early  morning  as  he 
had  one  foot  upon  the  threshold  it  was  given  him  for  our  sake  to 
ofive  us  a  word  of  comfort.  He  said:  'This  is  bliss;  it  is  like  a 
trance.  If  this  is  death  it  is  beautiful.'  And  his  face  lighted  up 
as  he  mentioned  those  whom  he  saw. 

**  We  could  not  call  him  back ;  we  tried  to  for  a  moment,  but 
we  could  not.  We  thank  God  for  his  home  life,  for  his  true  life, 
and  we  thank  God  that  he  was  our  father,  and  that  he  led  each  one 
of  his  children  to  know  Jesus  Christ." 

A  Beautiful  Home 

There  was  ever  a  holy  atmosphere  about  this  home  to  me  in 
the  few  times  I  was  permitted  to  pass  its  portals.  Mr.  Moody 
used  to  tell  a  story  of  a  sick  child  whose  father  one  day  came  into 
his  room  and  to  whom  the  child  said,  "lift  me  up,"  and  the  father 
lifted  him  gently,  and  he  said,  "  lift  me  higher,"  and  he  lifted  him 
yet  a  little  higher ;  "  higher,"  said  the  child,  faintly,  and  he  lifted 
him  just  as  high  as  his  arms  could  reach,  and  when  he  took  him 
down  he  was  dead.  "I  believe,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  "that  he  lifted 
him  into  the  arms  of  Christ,"  and  then  his  great  kindly  face 
glowed,  and  as  the  tears  rolled  down  his  cheeks  he  said,  "  I  would 
rather  have  my  children  say  that  about  me  than  to  have  a  monu- 
ment of  gold  that  would  pierce  the  clouds,"  and  his  home  life 
clearly  bore  out  the  fact  that  he  not  only  said  this  in  words,  but  he 
put  it  into  every  action  in  his  home.  His  personality  was  charm- 
ing ;  he  was  the  center  of  every  group  everywhere.     It  was  a  most 


26  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

ordinary  thing  to  see  representative  men  from  many  parts  of  the 
world  in  his  home,  but  none  were  ever  so  prominent  as  to  dim  the 
brightness  of  his  greatness,  and  yet  he  was  as  modest  as  a  woman 
and  as  humble  as  a  little  child.  Who  that  ever  sat  about  his  table 
can  forget  his  laugh.  It  was  as  hearty  a  laugh  as  one  has  ever 
heard.  He  knew  just  how  to  put  every  man  at  his  best.  His 
questions  always  brought  forth  that  which  would  make  a  man^^ 
appear  to  the  best  advantage  before  his  hearers.  "  Morgan,"  he 
would  say,  speaking  to  the  Rev.  G.  Campbell  Morgan,  "  tell  that 
story  about  Joseph  Parker  ;"  and  then  although  he  might  have 
heard  it  before  he  was  the  most  interested  listener  ;  his  eyes  would 
gleam  and  his  face  light  up  as  the  inimitable  story  teller  painted 
the  picture  of  London's  greatest  preacher. 

Thoughtful  of  Others 

He  was  so  very  thoughtful  of  other  people.  The  last  time  I 
rode  with  him  to  Mt.  Hermon,  he  stopped  to  talk  a  few  minutes 
with  the  men  at  the  old  ferry,  asked  them  about  their  homes  and 
spoke  a  cheering  word  concerning  their  work,  and  said  as  he  drove 
on,  "  I  want  them  to  know  that  I  am  interested  in  them." 

Driving  up  from  the  station  at  the  last  students'  conference  at 
Northfield,  he  stopped  every  student  trudgir^g  along  with  his  bag- 
gage and  took  the  bag  into  his  buggy  until  it  was  piled  up  with 
luggage,  and  the  greater  the  number  of  men  whose  burdens  he 
lifted,  the  happier  he  became. 

Walking  across  his  lawn  one  day  when  his  conversation  was, 
as  ever,  the  evangelizing  of  the  great  cities,  he  turned  quickly  and 
said,  "  Chapman,  how  many  children  have  you  ?"  and  when  I  told 
him  two,  as  I  had  then,  he  turned  quickly  about  and  said  "  come 
with  me,"  and  he  pointed  out  to  me  some  white  turkeys  and  some 
ducks  of  a  very  rare  breed  and  said,  "  I  will  send  a  pair  of  these 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  27 

to  the  children,"  and  when  only  a  few  days  had  elapsed,  sure 
enough  the  turkeys  and  the  ducks  came  safely  to  my  country 
home,  and  my  children  took  particular  delight  in  feeding  and 
caring  for  the  ducks  and  turkeys  that  came  from  Mr.  Moody's 
house. 

Driving  along  the  country  road  with  Dr.  Wilton  Merle  Smith, 
of  New  York,  when  the  conversation  had  been  general,  he  stopped 
his  horse  under  the  shade  of  a  great  tree,  and,  said  Dr.  Smith,  "  he 
poured  out  his  soul  in  such  prayer  as  I  have  rarely  heard." 

"  I  Just  Wanted  to  be  With  You  " 

I  shall  ever  remember  one  of  his  illustrations.  He  had  told 
one  of  his  children  that  he  was  not  to  be  disturbed  in  his  study,  and 
after  a  little  while  the  door  of  the  study  opened  and  the  child  came 
in.  "What  do  you  want,"  said  the  father,  and  the  little  fellow 
looking  up  into  his  father's  face  said,  "  I  just  wanted  to  be  with 
you,"  and  the  tears  started  into  the  great  evangelist's  eyes  as  he  said, 
"  it  ouofht  to  be  like  that  between  us  and  our  God."  I  can  well  un- 
derstand  how  his  little  child  would  want  to  be  with  him  every  minute 
of  his  time,  for  there  are  many  of  us  who  counted  it  our  special 
privilege  to  be  in  fellowship  with  this  godly  man. 

The  first  time  I  saw  him  is  a  memorable  day  in  my  life. 
I  was  a  student  at  Lake  Forest  University,  and  he  was  to 
speak  in  Chicago,  I  think  it  was  in  1878.  Four  times  he  preached 
the  Gospel  that  day  and  I  was  in  every  service ;  but  the 
service  of  all  services  was  that  of  the  afternoon  in  old  Far- 
well  Hall ;  it  was  for  men  only.  The  place  was  filled  to 
overflowing  with  men  ;  the  singing  was  superb,  so  said  my  friends, 
but  I  lost  the  power  of  the  music  in  the  sight  of  this  man  of 
God  of  whom  I  had  heard  so  much.  His  text  was,  *'  Be  not  de- 
ceived, God  is  not  mocked  \  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he 


28  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

also  reap."  The  sermon  is  remembered  because,  under  God,  it  has 
been  used  to  lead  so  many  to  Christ.  Under  the  power  of  it  I  saw 
my  own  heart,  and  then  I  saw  the  Saviour  who  was  waiting  to  make 
it  clean.  I  halted  around  with  others  if  only  I  might  have  the 
chance  to  touch  his  hand.  Just  in  front  of  me  went  a  man  who 
held  Mr.  Moody's  attention  for  a  little  time,  and  who  said  to  him, 
as  he  afterwards  told  me,  "  I  am  a  defaulter,  I  have  taken  money 
which  is  not  my  own,  I  am  a  fugitive  from  justice,  what  must  I 
do  ?  "  And  Mr.  Moody  told  him  he  must  take  the  money  back, 
even  though  it  meant  punishment,  and  he  did  it ;  was  sent  to  the 
penitentiary,  was  pardoned  out  just  before  he  died  of  quick  con- 
sumption. 

"He  Has  Forgiven  Me!" 

Before  the  pardon  Mr.  Moody  made  his  way  across  the 
country  that  he  might  stand  in  his  cell,  and  as  he  entered,  the  young 
man  sprang  to  his  feet  and  putting  his  arms  out  to  Mr.  Moody  said. 
"He  has  forgiven  me.  He  has  forgiven  me."  His  evangelistic  life 
was  filled  with  just  such  incidents.  In  the  evening  of  that  great  first 
day  I  saw  him  once  again  and  followed  him  into  the  after  meeting 
where  I  had  the  privilege  of  a  moment's  conversation.  I  had  been 
in  doubt  for  a  long  time  on  the  subject  of  assurance.  I  did  not 
know  certainly  whether  I  was  a  Christian  or  not,  and  Mr.  Moody 
said,  when  I  asked  him  to  help  me,  "do  you  believe  this  verse?" 
and  he  quoted  the  Fifth  Chapter  of  John  and  the  24th  verse, 
"  Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you.  He  that  heareth  my  word,  and 
believeth  on  Him  that  sent  me,  hath  everlasting  life,  and  shall  not 
come  into  condemnation  ;  but  is  passed  from  death  unto  life."  I 
said,  "certainly  I  believe  it."  "Are  you  saved,"  he  said,  and  I  said, 
■■'sometimes  I  think  I  am,  other  times  I  feel  I  am  not."  He  put 
his  hand  on  my  shoulder  and  said  but  one  sentence,  and  then  he  left 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  29 

me;  "young  man,"  said  he,  "whom  are  you  doubting?"  and  then 
he  left  me,  and  it  flashed  across  my  mind  in  an  instant  that,  in  my 
lack  of  assurance,  I  was  doubting  Christ ;  from  that  moment  to  this 
I  have  never  doubted. 

The  Power  of  God  on  His  Work 

The  next  impression  was  in  connection  with  the  brief  confer- 
ences held  throughout  the  country  when  five  days  were  spent  in 
Albany  and  Troy,  and  the  meetings  were  held  in  the  First  Re- 
formed Church  of  which  I  afterwards  became  pastor.  I  came  down 
from  my  country  church  with  many  other  ministers  from  different 
parts  of  the  State.  The  great  church  was  crowded  ;  I  was  obliged 
to  stand  in  the  aisle,  but  I  forgot  all  discomfort  in  the  impression 
that  was  made  upon  me  by  this  mighty  man  of  God.  I  followed 
him  from  one  city  to  another  and  then  went  back  to  my  own  church 
to  preach  to  my  people  on  the  story  of  the  Moody  meetings.  The 
power  of  God  was  not  only  on  his  work,  but  was  on  the  very  men- 
tion of  it,  so  that  my  church  officers  came  together  and  said  that 
this  work  must  go  on,  and  more  than  a  hundred  people  came  to 
Christ  because  of  it.  In  the  day  when  rewards  are  given  for  ser- 
vice, I  am  very  sure  that  my  dear  friend  will  share  in  the  glory  of 
these  who  came  to  Christ  indirectly  through  his  ministry. 

When  I  became  an  evangelist  his  word  was  always  the  cheeri- 
est; I  never  met  him  that  he  did  not  have  some  word  to  say  concern- 
ing the  work  at  large.  If  ever  there  was  a  perplexity  in  my  mind,  or 
any  doubt  as  to  what  my  course  of  action  should  be,  in  settling  any 
problem,  Mr.  Moody  was  the  first  to  give  advice  and  always  the 
wisest  of  all  advisers.  The  last  time  I  saw  him  was  in  Boston,  in 
the  days  when  Admiral  Dewey  was  to  be  welcomed  to  the  New 
England  Metropolis.  He  was  there  that  the  people  might  have  the 
privilege  of  hearing  Campbell  Morgan.     I  heard  him  say,  "some 


30  INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER 

people  think  we  ought  to  give  the  meetings  up  because  of  the  ex- 
citement  outside,  but  I  beheve,"  he  said  "that  Christ  is  more  attract- 
ive to  the  people  than  anything  in  all  this  world."  The  very  morn- 
ing of  the  parade  when  Mr.  Morgan  was  obliged  to  be  away  and 
other  speakers  could  not  delay,  some  of  his  friends  suggested  that 
he  at  least  give  up  this  meeting.  But  he  was  never  easily  discour- 
aged and  he  positively  refused  to  yield  in  the  least,  and  he  preached 
himself  with  his  old  time  vigor  to  a  great  company  of  people  in 
Tremont  Temple. 

The  Last  Picture  of  the  Evangelist 

The  last  picture  of  him  is  drawn  by  the  Hon.  John  Wana- 
maker.  He  was  on  his  way  to  Kansas  City,  and,  as  Mr.  Wanamaker 
said,  he  had  turned  away  from  his  comfortable  home  and  was 
going  away  into  the  far  West,  when  he  might  have  had  all  the  rest 
of  his  home  and  help  of  his  family,  only  for  the  joy  of  preaching 
the  Gospel.  Mr.  Wanamaker  met  him  at  one  of  the  railroad 
stations.  It  just  so  happened  at  this  time  that  he  was  alone  ;.  he 
purchased  his  own  ticket,  checked  his  baggage,  then  said,  "  we  will 
have  a  little  time  now  together,"  and  they  sat  down  in  another  rail- 
way station  when  Mr.  Moody  poured  out  his  heart  to  his  old  friend 
concerning  some  of  the  interests  that  were  dear  to  him,  and  then 
as  they  parted  he  said,  with  his  face  flushed  and  his  eyes  filled 
with  tears,  "  if  I  could  only  get  hold  of  one  more  Eastern  city  I 
should  be  grateful  to  God."  These  two  friends  said  good-bye,  the 
one  to  go  into  all  the  comforts  of  the  presence  of  his  loved  ones, 
and  the  other  to  hurry  away  across  the  country  that  he  might  hold 
his  last  service,  preach  his  last  sermon,  and  then  go  from  the  very 
thick  of  the  fight  into  the  presence  of  his  God. 

D.    L.    Moody   is  dead.     Men   say  it  with   sobs,  and  the  old 
world  seems  lonely  without  him,  but  D.  L.  Moody  is  in  heaven,  we 


INTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER  31 

say  it  with  thanksgiving,  and  we  can  just  imagine  the  joy  which 
rang  through  all  the  arches  of  the  heavenly  land  when  he  entered 
in  through  the  gates  into  the  city.  So  is  it  strange  that  many  can 
say  the  words  of  Dr.  Weston  with  which  this  chapter  began,  "  I 
would  rather  be  D.  L.  Moody  lying  dead  in  his  coffin  than  to  be 
vhe  greatest  man  alive  in  the  world  to-day." 

Prop^essor  Drummond  on  Moody 

In  his  day  no  one  was  closer  to  Mr.  Moody,  than  Prof.  Drum- 
mond, and  a  few  years  ago  he  said  this  of  his  friend  :  "  Whether 
estimated  by  the  moral  qualities  which  go  to  the  making  up  of  a 
personal  character,  or  the  extent  to  which  he  has  impressed  these 
upon  communities  of  men  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic,  there  is, 
perhaps,  no  more  truly  great  man  living  than  D.  L.  Moody.  By 
moral  influences  in  this  connection,  I  mean  the  influence  which, 
with  whatever  doctrinal  accompaniment,  leads  men  to  better  lives 
and  higher  ideals.  I  have  never  heard  Mr.  Moody  defend  any 
particular  church.  I  have  never  heard  him  quoted  as  a  theologian. 
But  I  know  of  large  numbers  of  men  and  women  of  all  churches 
and  creeds,  of  many  countries  and  ranks,  from  the  poorest  to  the 
richest,  and  from  the  most  ignorant  to  the  most  wise,  upon  whom 
he  has  placed  an  ineffaceable  moral  mark." 


■J'f  w' 


CHAPTER  II. 

Northfield 

IT  Is  pleasant  to  think  that  the  privilege  should  have  been  given 
to  Mr.  Moody  of  absorbing  his  earlier  training  and  of  associat- 
ing his  later  work  with  so  charming  a  place  naturally  as  Northfield. 
God's  children  are  not  denied  the  fair,  the  beautiful  things  of 
Nature.  It  is  just  like  our  Heavenly  Father  to  give  the  best  to 
one  who  walked  so  close  to  Him  as  did  this  dear  friend. 

Those  of  us  who  knew  Mr.  Moody  well  remember  how  he 
loved  beautiful  things.  The  song  of  the  brook  was  music  to  his 
soul ;  the  coming  of  the  leaves  and  flowers  of  spring  was  a  parable ; 
and  his  own  dear  Northfield  was  beloved  by  him  to  the  end.  He 
was  perfectly  happy  when  driving  about  through  the  beauties  of 
the  surrounding  country. 

In  view  of  his  love  for  Nature,  and  the  unusual  beauty  of  his 
early  environment,  it  is,  perhaps,  not  surprising  that  the  first 
doubts  to  assail  the  faith  of  the  boy  Moody,  after  his  conversion, 
were  pantheistic.  He  himself  has  related  how  a  pantheist 
approached  him  and  told  him  of  God  as  Nature,  and  how  it  troubled 
him.  But  his  doubts  resolved  themselves  into  a  firmer  belief  in 
Nature,  not  as  God,  but  as  God's  handiwork. 

Northfield  is  not  a  Modern  Town 

Its  elms  whisper  a  long  story  of  days  when  men  who  sought 
to  worship  God  in  freedom  of  conscience  martyred  themselves  by 
denial  of  the  comforts  of  their  homes  in  the  old  world  and  faced 

3  (35) 


3^  NORTHFIELD 

the  terrors  of  bitter  want  and  of  crafty  savage  foes  in  the  wilder- 
nesses of  New  England. 

Long  before  this  particular  spot  in  the  valley  of  the  Connecticut 
was  occupied  by  the  white  man,  large  tribes  of  Indians  dwelt  there, 
living  upon  the  fruits  of  a  generous  lowland  soil  and  the  trophies 
of  the  chase. 

The  streams  abounded  in  shad  and  salmon.  The  plenty  of 
fish  gave  the  place  its  Indian  name,  Squakheag,  which  signifies,  in 
the  Indian  tongue,  a  place  for  spearing  salmon.  Wigwams  clustered 
on  nearly  every  knoll  and  bluff,  and  along  the  banks  of  the  river 
ran  the  narrow  trail  of  the  aborigines. 

A  little  way  back  from  either  side  the  river,  and  following  its 
windings,  extends  a  range  of  hills.  Brush  Mountain,  one  of  these 
hills,  was  regarded  by  the  Indians  with  a  superstitious  veneration, 
as  the  abode  of  their  Great  Spirit.  Did  not  his  breath  come  forth 
every  spring,  from  a  cleft  in  the  rock,  and  melt  the  snow  ?  To-day 
the  traveler  who  climbs  Brush  Mountain  will  be  shown  an  opening 
whence  comes  a  blast  of  air,  warm  enough  in  the  winter  to  keep 
the  snow  from  accumulating  in  the  immediate  vicinity. 

The  First  Settlers 

In  1669  a  small  party  of  whites,  following  the  trail  along  the 
Connecticut  northward  from  Northampton,  came  upon  the  lands 
of  the  Squakheags.  The  natives  had  suffered  severely  a  few  years 
before  from  the  raid  of  a  large  party  of  Mohawks,  who  had  come 
from  the  West,  laying  waste  their  fields  and  destroying  their 
villages.  To  the  eyes  of  the  white  men  the  land  seemed  very  fair. 
About  Northampton  the  tillable  soil  had  been  quite  completely 
taken  up,  and  the  Squakheag  region  seemed  to  offer  a  good  situa- 
tion for  a  new  settlement.  As  the  Indians  were  not  unwilling  to 
part  with  their  lands,  a  petition  was  made  to  the  General  Court  of 


NORTHFIELD  37 

Massachusetts  by  thirty-three  settlers,  for  permission  to  purchase 
the  land  from  the  Indians.  The  permission  was  granted  on  the 
condition  that  not  less  than  twenty  families  should  settle  there 
within  eighteen  months  after  the  first  move. 

The  settlers  took  up  the  land  in  1673,  and  for  two  years  lived 
in  amicable  relations  with  their  Indian  neiehbors.  Then,  when 
King  Philip's  war  broke  out,  the  Squakheags  were  moved  by  the 
rude  eloquence  of  the  chief's  emissaries  to  take  part  in  the  uprising. 
One  morning  they  attacked  the  whites  in  the  fields,  killing  many, 
and  drivincr  those  who  remained  to  seek  refucje  within  the  stockade. 
The  position  of  the  sixteen  families  in  the  fort  was  perilous.  A 
relief  expedition  from  Deerfield  was  ambushed  while  on  the  way, 
and  fled  home  with  great  Ioes.  Another  company  succeeded  in 
reachinof  Northfield  and  rescuing  the  beleagfuered  ones,  who  left 
the  settlement  and  returned  to  their  former  homes. 

The  Second  Settlement 

Not  for  seven  years  did  the  proprietors  of  the  land  take  steps 
towards  its  re-occupation.  Then  about  twenty  families  returned. 
Houses  were  built  along  a  main  street,  and  were  protected  by  two 
forts.  In  1688  eleven  Indians,  sent  on  the  warpath  by  the  French 
in  Canada,  murdered  six  persons  in  Northfield,  and  so  alarmed 
the  rest  that  more  than  one-half  left  the  settlement.  This  so  weak- 
ened the  town  that  it  was  abandoned  by  those  who  remained. 

The  final  settlement  was  made  in  1713,  and  Northfield  now 
prospered,  although  in  1723  it  was  again  exposed  to  attacks  from 
savages,  who  had  been  incited  to  make  depredations  upon  the  New 
England  villages  by  the  French  Governor  of  Canada.  It  is  said  that 
men  were  then  able  to  harvest  their  crops  only  in  armed  parties  of 
forty   or   more.     A  fort  was  built  a  few  miles  up   the  river,  and  a 


78  NORTHFIELD 

cannon  was  placed  there,  that  its  voice  mig^ht  give  warning  of  the 
approaching  enemy.  Peace  came  after  the  death  of  the  Governor  of 
Canada. 

The  existence  of  the  hamlet  continued  for  a  long  time  precari- 
ous, for  it  was  an  outpost  among  the  settlements,  and  therefore 
especially  exposed  to  danger  from  the  savages.  During  the  French 
and  Indian  War  Northfield  was  in  constant  terror.  Thereafter  such 
dangers  gradually  disappeared,  and  time  was  given  to  develop  the 
natural  resources  of  the  place.  Northfield  sent  her  quota  to  take 
part  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  nor  did  she  hesitate  to  assert 
the  principles  of  liberty',  even  to  the  extent  of  forcing  her  parson, 
against  his  first  desire,  to  omit  from  his  prayer  the  usual  petition 
for  blessing  on   "  his  majesty,"  the  King  of  Great  Britian. 

After  the   Revolution 

After  the  war  the  town  rapidly  acquired  a  certain  culture.  A 
hotel  building,  erected  in  i  798,  was  purchased  by  a  company  of  citi- 
zens in  1829,  and  made  into  an  academy  which  did  honorable  service 
for  education  duringr  manv  vears.  About  this  same  time  the  town 
was  deeply  affected  by  the  wave  of  Unitarianism,  which  was  then 
spreading  throughout  New  England.  Schisms  arose  in  the  villag'e 
church,  and  a  new  parish  was  formed. 

Northtield  lies  where  three  States  meet — Massachusetis,  New 
Hampshire  and  Vermont.  Just  south  of  the  Massachusetts  State 
line  is  the  village,  scattered  for  the  most  part  along  the  main 
street,  two  miles  long  and  160  feet  wide,  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river.  On  either  side  of  the  street  is  a  double  row  of  elms  and 
maples,  which  have  grown  old  with  the  village  until  they  bend  their 
jfty  heads  over  the  quiet  roadway  like  the  nodding  guardians  of 
some  useless  post.  Savage  neighbors  are  no  longer  near  to  enforce 
-n  alert  sentinelship. 


NORTHFIELD  41 

Several  roads  cross  this  avenue,  and  all  lead  to  scenes  purely 
pastoral.  Flanking  the  main  street  are  dwellings,  for  the  most 
part  set  well  back  among  their  lawns  and  fragrant  gardens.  These 
homes  were  built  to  last.  They  seem  as  substantial  to-day  as  when 
they  were  built,  although  many  of  them  are  very  old.  The  house 
occupied  by  Mr.  William  Alexander,  for  instance,  has  been  in  the 
hands  of  his  family  for  one  hundred  and  fifteen  years.  The 
present-day  tendency  to  flock  to  the  large  cities  has  somewhat 
affected  the  younger  generation  of  Northfield's  old  families,  but  the 
elms  and  the  old  houses  are  still  there  to  perpetuate  the  atmosphere 
of  old  New  England  days,  and  better  than  all  this  the  town  has 
been  so  sanctified  by  the  labors  of  her  own  best-known  son  that 
she  will  be  remembered  as  the  home  of  good  works  long  after 
pompous  cities  have  crumbled. 

His  Birthplace 

Mr.  Moody's  birthplace  is  a  plain,  small  farm-house,  which  still 
stands  on  the  hillside.  It  looks  upon  one  of  the  country  roads, 
which  winds  up  from  the  main  street  in  an  easterly  direction.  The 
building  is  two  stories  high,  with  green  blinds,  and  is  protected 
from  the  sun  by  stately  trees.  There  is  one  tree,  of  especial 
majesty,  under  which  Mr.  Moody  is  said  to  have  planned  some  of 
his  greatest  sermons. 

The  home  in  which  Mr.  Moody  and  his  family  were  domiciled 
after  his  work  had  so  broadened  as  to  make  necessary  a  larger 
house  than  the  homestead,  stands  near  the  north  end  of  the  town, 
and  is  not  far  from  his  mother's  house.  It  was  purchased  for 
about  $3,000.  A  plain,  roomy  building  it  is.  From  time  to  time, 
as  the  requirements  came  up,  Mr.  Moody  had  additions  built  to 
the  house,  until  it  spread  out  its  arms  with  a  suggestion  of 
hospitality  most  inviting  to  the  visitor.      The  building  fronts  upon 


42  NORTHFIELD 

the  main  street.  Mr.  Moody's  study  Is  on  the  first  floor,  only  a 
few  steps  within  from  the  entrance.  The  atmosphere  of  the  house, 
with  its  simple  but  substantial  furniture,  suggests  the  home  of  a 
man   who   desires   to   shape  his  environment   to   make   it  suit  his 

work. 

The  Conception  of   Northfield  Seminary 

When  Mr.  Moody  returned  to  Northfield  after  his  evangel- 
istic tour  of  Great  Britain,  he  went  home  to  Northfield  to  rest. 
With  his  eyes  sharpened  by  travel,  and  with  his  usual  alert  observ- 
ance of  the  needs  of  those  about  him,  he  conceived  a  plan  of 
making  possible  education  for  girls  who  were  born  to  the  unstimu- 
lating  routine  of  farm  life.  The  germ  of  Northfield  Seminary  lay 
in  this  conception.  In  1878  Mr.  Moody  purchased  the  first  sixteen 
acres  of  land  toward  the  two  hundred  and  seventy  acres  which  are 
now  owned  by  the  Seminary.  Mr.  H.  N.  F.  Marshall,  of  Boston, 
was  a  guest  of  Mr.  Moody  at  that  time,  and  the  decision  to  pur- 
chase the  land  was  arrived  at  with  the  advantage  of  his  advice. 
As  he  and  Mr.  Moody  came  to  a  decision,  the  owner  of  the  land 
walked  up  the  street.  They  invited  him  in,  asked  his  price  for  the 
sixteen  acres,  paid  the  money,  and  had  the  papers  made  out  before 
the  owner  had  time  to  recover  from  his  surprise. 

Work  was  begun  on  the  building  the  following  year.  It  was 
intended  to  establish  this  school  as  a  high-class  seminary  for  girls. 
When  it  was  opened  in  1879,  twenty-five  pupils  entered.  At  first 
they  studied  and  recited  at  Mr.  Moody's  home,  the  first  dormitory 
not  being  opened  until  1880.  Bonar  Hall,  the  second  dormitory, 
was  burned  a  few  years  later,  but  Marquand  Hall  was  opened  in 
1885.  Other  buildings  have  followed.  At  present  the  school 
possesses  seven  dormitories,  a  library,  a  gymnasium,  a  recitation 
hall  and  an  auditorium. 


NORTHFIELD  43 

The  buildings  have  been  erected  with  a  view  to  artistic  ejffect  as 
well  as  adequate  accomodations,  and  add  much  to  the  beauty  of 
the  situation.  From  the  slopes  of  the  school  grounds,  one  looks 
up  the  river  valley  to  the  distant  green  hills  of  Vermont  and  New 
Hampshire,  while  the  placid  river  meanders  through  fertile  fields 
which  show  rich  with  the  fruits  of  the  farm.  Well  built  roads 
wind  through  the  grounds  ;  shade  trees  and  groups  of  shrubbery 
have  been  set  out.  Moreover,  the  land  yields  practical  returns  as 
a  farm  under  the  supervision  of  Mr.  Moody's  brother.  Six  horses 
and  fifty  head  of  cattle  belong  to  this  school  farm,  and  from  ten  to 
fourteen  men  are  constantly  employed.  The  school  now  numbers 
about  four  hundred  pupils,  its  graduates  being  admitted  to  Welles- 
ley,  Smith  and  other  high-grade  institutions. 

The  Mt.   Hermon  School  For  Boys 

When  Mr.  Moody  was  conducting  his  earliest  mission  work  in 
Chicago,  he  laid  close  to  his  heart  a  plan  to  provide  some  day  a 
school  where  boys  could  secure  training  in  the  elementary  branches 
and  the  Bible.  With  this  still  in  mind  he  purchased,  in  1880,  two 
farms  of  115  acres  each,  with  two  farm-houses  and  barns.  They 
were  situated  on  what  was  known  as  Grass  Hill,  four  miles  from 
Northfield  Seminary,  and  in  the  town  of  Gill.  This  school  was  in- 
corporated as  the  Mt.  Hermon  School  for  Boys.  The  present  build- 
ings include  five  brick  cottages,  a  large  recitation  hall,  a  dining  hall 
and  kitchen,  Crossley  Hall  and  Silliman  Science  Hall.  This  school 
now  numbers  about  400  students,  and  here,  as  at  the  Seminary  the 
industrial  system  is  a  prominent  feature,  but  at  Mt.  Hermon  nearly 
all  of  the  work  of  the  farm  and  house  is  done  by  the  boys. 

The  auditorium  of  the  Northfield  Seminary  was  built  in  1894 
and  was  planned  by  Mr.  Moody  for  the  use  of  the  summer  confer- 
ences.    It  seats  nearly  3,000  persons.     A  grove  of  white  birches 


44  NORTHFIELD 

on  a  hillside  back  of  the  Seminary  becomes,  during  the  summer 
meetings  *'  Camp  Northfield  ",  where  young  men  spend  their  sum- 
mer outing  periods.  \ 
Henry  Drummond  describes  somewhere  his  first  astonishment 
at  finding  this  little  New  England  hamlet  with  a  dozen  of  the  finest 
educational  buildings  in  America,  and  of  his  surprise  when  he 
stopped  to  think  that  all  these  buildings  owed  their  existence  to  a 
man  whose  name  is  perhaps  associated  in  the  minds  of  three-fourths 
of  his  countrymen,  not  with  education,  but  with  the  want  of  it. 

The  Character  of  the  Town 

The  eastern  part  of  the  town  has  of  late  years  become  known 
as  East  Northfield,  and  has  its  separate  Post  Office  and  stores. 
New  streets  have  been  laid  out  and  new  houses  have  been  built. 
Northfield,  in  fact,  is  coming  to  be  known  as  a  summer  resort,  but 
not  of  the  usual  type.  Frivolous  recreation  gives  way  there  to 
sane  occupation  and  wholesome  exercise.  Intemperance,  the  use 
of  tobacco,  card  playing  and  dancing  have  no  place  there  ;  but  the 
heart  of  nature  is  opened  to  those,  who,  with  minds  bent  upon  the 
best  things,  seek  her  reverently. 

Northfield  then  is  both  a  typical  New  England  town  and  the 
result  of  the  individual  impression  of  one  man's  life.  All  that  is 
best  in  American  culture  is  there  epitomized,  and  the  elms  and  the 
hazy  hills  and  the  homes  of  by-gone  generations  are  witnesses  of 
the  regenerating  influences  which  can  be  brought  into  play  through 
the  devotion  and  singleness  of  purpose  of  one  man. 


CHAPTER  III 

His  Early  Life 

D WIGHT  LYMAN  MOODY  was  born  in  the  town  of 
Northfield,  Mass.,  February  5,  1837.  He  was  the  sixth  of 
seven  sons  who,  with  two  daughters,  made  up  the  family 
of  Edwin  and  Betsy  Holton  Moody.  The  father  had  acquired  a 
little  farmhouse  and  a  few  acres  of  stony  ground  on  a  hillside  just 
without  the  limits  of  the  town,  but  the  whole  was  encumbered  by 
mortgage.  Mr.  Moody  worked  as  a  stonemason  when  the  oppor- 
tunity was  afforded,  using  his  leisure  time  to  till  his  farm.  The 
burden  of  his  responsibilities  proved  too  heavy;  reverses  crushed  his 
spirit ;  and,  after  an  illness  of  only  a  few  hours,  he  died  suddenly 
at  the  age  of  forty-one  years,  when  Dwight  was  only  four  years 
old,  leaving  a  large  family  unprovided  for. 

A  Sudden  Upheaval  of  the  Family 

Young  as  he  was,  the  picture  impressed  on  the  boy's  mind  by 
this  sudden  upheaval  of  the  household,  consequent  upon  his  father's 
death,  remained  vivid.  He  did  not  forget  the  desperate  feeling 
which  must  have  seized  the  family  in  that  crisis  ;  nor  did  he  ever 
forget  the  wonderful  fortitude  with  which  his  mother  met  the  situa- 
tion. Only  a  month  after  the  death  of  the  father  two  posthumous 
children  were  born— a  boy  and  a  girl.  Neighbors  advised  Mrs. 
Moody  not  to  attempt  to  face  the  harsh  conditions  now  confronting 
her.  "  Keep  your  twin  babies,  but  bind  out  your  other  children," 
they  urged.     "  It  will  be  so  long  before  they  can  be  of  any  real 

(45) 


46  HIS  EARL  Y  LIFE 

service  to  you  that  their  maintenance  just  now  will  be  a  greater 
burden  than  you  should  assume." 

But  Mrs.  Moody  was  not  the  woman  to  be  daunted  by  circum- 
stances. The  idea  of  separating  from  her  children  was  not  enter- 
tained. She  took  upon  herself  the  task  of  snatching  some  tribute 
money  from  an  unwilling  soil,  and  of  bringing  up  her  children  to 
wholesome  manhood  and  womanhood — how  well  she  succeeded  is 
shown  by  the  results. 

One  Calamity  After  Another 

One  incident  of  this  early  period  proved  a  severe  blow  to  the 
bereaved  family.  The  oldest  son,  upon  whom  the  mother  was 
planning  to  place  considerable  dependence,  ran  away  from  home. 
Mr.  Moody  in  later  years  related  this  incident  and  its  sequel  in 
the  following  words  : 

"  I  can  give  you  a  little  experience  of  my  own  family.  Before 
I  was  four  years  old  the  first  thing  I  remember  was  the  death  of 
my  father.  He  had  been  unfortunate  in  business  and  failed.  Soon 
after  his  death  the  creditors  came  in  and  took  everything.  My 
mother  was  left  with  a  large  family  of  children.  One  calamity 
after  another  swept  over  the  entire  household.  Twins  were  added 
to  the  family,  and  my  mother  was  taken  sick.  The  eldest  boy  was 
fifteen  years  of  age,  and  to  him  my  mother  looked  as  a  stay  in  her 
calamity,  but  all  at  once  that  boy  became  a  wanderer.  He  had 
been  reading  some  of  the  trashy  novels  and  the  belief  had  seized 
him  that  he  had  only  to  go  away  to  make  a  fortune.  Away  he  went. 
I  can  remember  how  eagerly  she  used  to  look  for  tidings  of  that 
boy ;  how  she  used  to  send  us  to  the  postoffice  to  see  if  there  was 
a  letter  from  him,  and  recollect  how  we  used  to  come  back  with  the 
sad  news,  '  No  letter.'  I  remember  how  in  the  evenings  we  used 
to  sit  beside  her  in  that  New  England  home,  and  we  would  talk 


HIS  EARL  Y  LIFE  A7 

about  our  father ;  but  the  moment  the  name  of  that  boy  was  men- 
tioned she  would  hush  us  Into  silence.  Some  nights  when  the  wind 
was  very  high,  and  the  house,  which  was  upon  a  hill,  would  tremble 
at  every  gust,  the  voice  of  my  mother  was  raised  in  prayer  for  that 
wanderer  who  had  treated  her  so  unkindly.  I  used  to  think  she 
loved  him  more  than  all  of  us  put  together,  and  I  believe  she  did. 
On  a  Thanksgiving  day — you  know  that  is  a  family  day  in  New 
England — she  used  to  set  a  chair  for  him,  thinking  he  would  return 
home. 

His  Brother  Home  Again 

"Her  family  grew  up  and  her  boys  left  home.  When  I  got 
so  that  I  could  write,  I  sent  letters  all  over  the  country,  but  could 
find  no  trace  of  him.  One  day,  while  in  Boston,  the  news  reached 
me  that  he  had  returned.  While  in  that  city,  I  remember  how  I 
used  to  look  for  him  In  every  store — he  had  a  mark  on  his  face — • 
but  I  never  got  any  trace.  One  day  while  my  mother  was  sitting 
at  the  door,  a  stranger  was  seen  coming  toward  the  house,  and 
when  he  came  to  the  door  he  stopped.  My  mother  didn't  know 
her  boy.  He  stood  there  with  folded  arms  and  great  beard  flowing 
down  his  breast,  his  tears  trickling  down  his  face.  When  my 
mother  saw  those  tears  she  cried,  '  Oh,  it  is  my  lost  son,'  and  en- 
treated him  to  come  in.  But  he  stood  still.  '  No,  mother,'  he  said, 
'  I  will  not  come  in  until  I  hear  first  that  you  have  forgiven  me." 
Do  you  believe  she  was  not  willing  to  forgive  him  ?  Do  you  think 
she  was  likely  to  keep  him  standing  there.  She  rushed  to  the 
threshold,  threw  her  arms  around  him  and  breathed  forgiveness." 

The  Moody  family  were  Unitarians.  Dwight  had  the  early 
advantages  of  Christian  training,  attending,  as  soon  as  he  was  old 
enough,  the  church  In  the  village,  where  the  Rev.  Mr.  Everett  was 
pastor.  In  his  interest  In  the  efforts  of  Mrs.  Moody  to  earn  a 
livelihood  for  her  large  family,  Mr.  Everett  once  took  Dwight  into 


48  HIS  EARL  Y  LIFE 

his  family  for  a  time,  in  order  that  he  might  attend  school,  making 
return  for  this  privilege  by  running  errands  and  doing  chores. 
It  may  seem  strange  that  a  Unitarian  training  should  have  fostered 
a  temperament  which  afterward  became,  in  its  expression,  so 
purely  evangelical.  By  way  of  explanation,  it  is  said,  that  Mr. 
Everett  was  not  one  of  those  who  questioned  the  divinity  of  our 
Saviour.  Unorthodoxy  had  not  as  yet  affected  this  church.  The 
Bible  as  the  Word  of  God,  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God,  the  Church 
and  its  Sacraments — these  were  accepted  beliefs  of  this  country 
pastor. 

Dwight  also  had  the  benefits  of  religious  training  in  the  home. 
Mrs.  Moody  early  taught  her  children  to  learn  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture and  verses  of  hymns.  These  she  would  recite  at  her  frugal 
table,  and  the  children  would  repeat  them  after  her. 

Incidents  From   Moody's  Early  Days 

When  Dwight  was  about  six  years  old,  an  old  rail  fence  one 
day  fell  upon  him.  He  could  not  lift  the  heavy  rails.  Exhausted 
by  his  efforts,  he  had  almost  given  up.  "  Then,"  as  he  afterward  told 
the  story,  "  I  happened  to  think  that  maybe  God  would  help  me, 
and  so  I  asked  Him  ;  and  after  that  I  could  lift  the  rails," 

Another  incident,  which  Mr.  Moody  has  related,  seems  to 
have  made  so  profound  an  impression  upon  his  youthful  mind  that 
its  influence  in  preparing  his  heart  for  the  Gospel  message  cannot 
have  been  slight.     He  himself  has  related  the  story  in  these  words  : 

"When  I  was  a  young  boy — before  I  was  a  Christian — I  was  in 
a  field  one  day  with  a  man  who  was  hoeing.  He  was  weeping,  and 
he  told  me  a  strange  story,  which  I  have  never  forgotten.  When 
he  left  home  his  mother  gave  him  this  text :  '  Seek  first  the 
kingdom  of  God.'  But  he  paid  no  heed  to  it.  He  said  when  he 
got  settled  in  life,  and  his  ambition  to  get  money  was  gratified,  it 


DWIGHT  L.  MOODY,  from  a  photograph  taken  in  Boston  just  after 
he  left  home  to  make  his  way  in  the  world.  Photographed  from  a  picture 
hanging  in  ihe  house  of  Mrs.  Fitt,  Mr.  Moody's  only  daughter. 


HIS  EARLY  LIFE  $t 

Would  be  time  cnoucrh  then  to  seek  the  kino-dom  of  God.  He  went 
from  one  village  to  another  and  got  nothing  to  do.  When  Sunday 
came  he  went  into  a  village  church,  and  what  was  his  great  surprise 
to  hear  the  minister  give  out  the  text,  '  Seek  first  the  kingdom  of 
God.'  He  said  the  text  went  down  to  the  bottom  of  his  heart.  He 
thought  it  was  but  his  mother's  prayer  following  him,  and  that 
some  one  must  have  written  to  that  minister  about  him.  He  felt 
very  uncomfortable,  and  when  the  meeting  was  over  he  could  not 
eet  that  sermon  out  of  his  mind. 


t» 


Again    '  Seek  First  the  Kingdom  of  God  ' 

"He  went  away  from  that  town,  and  at  the  end  of  a  week  went 
into  another  church,  and  he  heard  the  minister  give  out  the 
same  text,  '  Seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God.'  He  felt  sure 
this  time  that  it  was  the  prayers  of  his  mother,  but  he  said 
calmly  and  deliberately,  '  No,  I  will  first  get  wealthy.'  He  said 
he  went  on  and  did  not  go  into  a  church  for  a  few  months, 
but  the  first  place  of  worship  he  went  into  he  heard  a  minister 
preaching  a  sermon  from  the  same  text.  He  tried  to  drown — to 
stifle  his  feelings ;  tried  to  get  the  sermon  out  of  his  mind,  and  resolved 
that  he  would  keep  away  from  church  altogether,  and  for  a  few 
years  he  did  keep  out  of  God's  house.  '  My  mother  died,'  he  said, 
'  and  the  text  kept  coming  up  in  my  mind,  and  I  said  I  will  try  and 
become  a  Christian.'  The  tears  rolled  down  his  cheeks,  as  he  said, 
*  I  could  not ;  no  sermon  ever  touched  me  ;  my  heart  is  as  hard  as 
that  stone,'  pointing  to  one  in  the  field.  I  couldn't  understand  what 
it  was  all  about — it  was  fresh  to  me  then.  I  went  to  Boston  and 
grot  converted,  and  the  first   thougrht  that  came   to  me  was  about 

this  man.     When  I  got  back  I  asked  mother,  '  Is  Mr.  L living 

in  such  a  place  ? '     '  Didn't  I  write  to  you  about  him  ? '  she  asked. 
'They  have  taken  him  to  an  insane  asylum,  and  to  every  one  who 


52  BIS  EARLY  LIFE 

goes  there  he  points  with  his  finger  up  there  and  tells  them  to  seek 
first  the  kingdom  of  God.'  There  was  that  man  with  his  eyes  dull 
with  the  loss  of  reason,  but  the  text  had  sunk  into  his  soul — it  had 
burned  down  deep.  O,  may  the  Spirit  of  God  burn  the  text  into 
your  hearts  to-night,  When  I  got  home  again  my  mother  told  me 
he  was  in  his  house,  and  I  went  to  see  him.  I  found  him  in  a  rock- 
ing chair,  with  that  vacant,  idiotic  look  upon  him.  As  soon  as  he 
saw  me,  he  pointed  at  me  and  said  :  '  Young  man,  seek  first  the 
kingdom  of  God.'  Reason  was  gone  but  the  text  was  there.  Last 
month,  when  I  was  laying  my  brother  down  in  his  grave,  I  could 
not  help  thinking  of  that  poor  man  who  was  lying  so  near  him,  and 
wishing  that  the  prayer  of  his  mother  had  been  heard,  and  that  he 
had  found  the  kingdom  of  God." 

It  is  doubtful,  however,  if  young  Moody  had  experienced  any 
real  religious  feeling  up  to  the  time  of  his  conversion  in  Boston. 
He  was  a  boy  like  other  boys — unlike  the  majority,  too,  in  his 
imperious  will,  his  indifference  to  obstacles,  his  boundless  energy. 
He  was  as  fond  of  mischief  as  the  average  boy.  The  influences  of 
a  farm-boy's  life,  tempered  though  they  were  by  the  forceful  direc- 
tion of  a  devoted  mother,  were  not  calculated  to  cultivate  in  him  a 
taste  for  the  finer  things  of  life.  His  passionate  outbursts  of 
temper  are  still  remembered  by  those  who  early  came  into  contact 
with  him.  His  profanity  is  a  matter  of  his  own  record.  Still,  he 
was  doubtless  in  this  regard  merely  a  type  of  his  environment. 
The  notable  thing  about  the  boy  was  his  force  ;  he  bore  in  his 
endowment  great  possibilities  for  good  or  ill. 

His  Early  Education 

Perhaps  only  twelve  terms  at  the  district  school  constituted 
Dwight's  early  education.  A  smattering  of  "the  three  R's,"  a 
little  geography,  and  the  practice  of  declamation  made  up  the  sum 


HIS  EARL  V  LIFE  53 

of  his  learning.  The  truth  of  the  matter  seems  to  be  that  he  did 
not  study  faithfully.  It  was  only  during  his  last  term  that  he  began 
to  apply  himself  with  diligence,  too  late  to  make  up  for  what  he 
had  lost.  His  reading  is  described  as  outlandish  beyond  descrip- 
tion. With  his  characteristic  tendency  to  jump  directly  to  the 
heart  of  a  question,  he  never  stopped  to  spell  out  an  unfamiliar 
word,  but  mouthed  his  sense  of  it  without  full  dependence  upon 
his  training,  or  made  up  a  new  word  which  sounded  to  his  ear  as 
suitable  as  the  original. 

Of  his  experiences  as  a  schoolboy  Mr,  Moody  has  given  the 
following  in  his  sermon  on  "  Law  versus  Grace  :" 

"The  Law   Party  and  the  Grace  Party" 

"  At  the  school  I  used  to  go  to  when  I  was  a  boy,  we  had  a 
teacher  who  believed  in  governing  by  law.  He  used  to  keep  a  rat- 
tan in  his  desk,  and  my  back  tingles  now  [shrugging  his  shoulders] 
as  I  think  of  it.  But  after  a  while  the  notion  eot  abroad  amone 
the  people  that  a  school  might  be  governed  by  love,  and  the  dis- 
trict was  divided  into  what  I  might  call  the  law  party,  and  the 
grace  party ;  the  law  party  standing  by  the  old  schoolmaster,  with 
his  rattan,  and  the  grace  party  wanting  a  teacher  who  could  get 
along  without  punishing  so  much. 

"  After  a  while  the  grace  party  got  the  upper  hand,  turned  out 
the  old  master,  and  hired  a  young  lady  to  take  his  place.  We  all 
understood  that  there  was  to  be  no  rattan  that  winter,  and  we 
looked  forward  to  having  the  jolliest  kind  of  a  time.  On  the  first 
morning  the  new  teacher,  whom  I  will  call  Miss  Grace,  opened  the 
school  with  reading  out  of  the  Bible  and  prayer.  That  was  a  new 
thing  and  we  didn't  quite  know  what  to  make  of  it.  She  told  us 
she  didn't  mean  to  keep  order  by  punishment,  but  she  hoped  we 
would  all  be  good  children,  for  her  sake  as  well  as  our  own.     This 


S4  HIS  EARLY  LIFE 

made  us  a  little  ashamed  of  the  mischief  we  had  meant  to  do,  and 
everything  went  on  pretty  well  for  a  few  days ;  but  pretty  soon  I 
broke  one  of  the  rules,  and  Miss  Grace  said  I  was  to  stop  that 
night  after  school.  Now  for  the  old  rattan,  said  I  to  myself ;  it's 
coming  now  after  all.  But  when  the  scholars  were  all  gone  she 
came  and  sat  down  by  me,  and  told  me  how  sorry  she  was  that  I, 
who  was  one  of  the  biggest  boys,  and  might  help  her  so  much,  was 
setting  such  a  bad  example  to  others,  and  making  it  so  hard  for 
her  to  get  along  with  them.  She  said  she  loved  us,  and  wanted  to 
help  us,  and  if  we  loved  her  we  would  obey  her,  and  then  every- 
thing would  go  on  well.  There  were  tears  in  her  eyes  as  she  said 
this,  and  I  didn't  know  what  to  make  of  it,  for  no  teacher  had  ever 
talked  that  way  to  me  before.  I  began  to  feel  ashamed  of  myself 
for  being  so  mean  to  any  one  who  was  so  kind  ;  and  after  that  she 
didn't  have  any  more  trouble  with  me,  nor  with  any  of  the  other 
scholars  either.    She  just  took  us  out  from  under  the  Law  and  put 

us  under  Grace." 

Departure  From  Home 

The  circumstances  which  led  up  to  the  departure  of  young 
Moody  from  home  have  been  variously  stated.  He  had  come  to 
the  age  of  seventeen.  In  those  days  a  boy  of  seventeen  was  sup- 
posed to  be  ready  to  enter  upon  the  serious  business  of  life.  New 
ambitions  were  arising  in  Dwight's  heart.  Mr.  Edward  Kimball, 
who  afterwards  led  the  boy  to  the  Lord,  is  perhaps  as  well  informed 
of  the  circumstances  of  his  life  in  Boston  as  any  man  now  living. 
He  gave  the  facts  as  he  was  familiar  with  them  at  the  time  of  Mr. 
Moody's  death. 

"  To  tell  the  story  correctly,"  said  Mr.  Kimball,  "  I  must  go 
back  to  Thanksgiving  day  forty-five  years  ago.  A  Thanksgiving 
family  dinner  party  was  assembled  at  the  Moody  home,  which  was 
on  a  farm  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Northfield,  Mass.     At  the  table, 


HIS  EARLY  LIFE  55 

among  others,  were  Samuel  and  Lemuel  Holton,  of  Boston,  two 
uncles  of  the  Moody  children.  Without  any  preliminary  warning 
young  Dwight,  a  boy  of  about  seventeen,  spoke  up  and  said  to  his 
uncle  Samuel :  "  Uncle,  I  want  to  come  to  Boston  and  have  a 
place  in  your  shoe  store.  Will  you  take  me  ?"  Despite  the 
directness  of  the  question,  the  uncle  returned  to  Boston  without 
giving  his  nephew  an  answer.  When  Mr.  Holton  asked  advice  in 
the  matter  from  an  older  brother  of  Dwight,  the  brother  told  his 
uncle  that  perhaps  he  had  better  not  take  the  boy,  for  in  a  short 
time  Dwieht  would  want  to  run  his  store. 

Young  Moody  Looking  For  a  Job 

"  Dwight  was  a  headstrong  young  fellow  who  would  not  study 
at  school,  and  who  was  much  fonder  of  a  practical  joke  than  he 
was  of  his  books.  His  expressed  desire  to  go  to  Boston  and  get 
work  was  not  a  jest  that  the  boy  forgot  the  day  after  Thanksgiving. 
The  two  uncles  were  surprised  when  one  day  in  the  following 
spring  Dwight  turned  up  in  Boston  looking  for  a  job.  His  uncle 
Samuel  did  not  offer  him  a  place.  Dwight,  when  asked  how  he 
thought  he  could  get  a  start,  said  he  wanted  work  and  he  guessed 
he  could  find  a  position.  After  days  of  efforts,  and  meeting  nothing 
but  failures  the  boy  grew  discouraged  with  Boston,  and  told  his 
uncle  Lemuel  he  was  going  to  New  York.  The  uncle  strongly 
advised  Dwight  not  to  go,  but  to  speak  to  his  uncle  Samuel  again 
about  the  matter.  The  boy  demurred,  saying  his  uncle  Samuel  knew 
perfectly  well  what  he  wanted.  But  the  uncle  insisted  so  that  a 
second  time  the  boy  asked  his  uncle  Samuel  for  a  place  in  his  store. 

"  '  Dwight,  I  am  afraid  if  you  come  in  here  you  will  want  to 
run  the  store  yourself,'  said  Mr.  Holton.  *  Now,  my  men  here 
want  to  do  their  work  as  I  want  it  done.  If  you  want  to  come  in 
here  and  do  the  best  you  can,  and  do  it  right,  and  if  you'll  ask  me 


56  HIS  EARLY  LIFE 

when  you  don't  know  how  to  do  anything,  or  if  I  am  not  here,  ask 
the  bookkeeper,  and  if  he's  not  here  one  of  the  salesmen  or  one  of 
the  boys,  and  if  you  are  wilHng  to  go  to  church  and  Sunday  school 
when  you  are  able  to  go  anywhere  on  Sundays,  and  if  you  are 
willing  not  to  go  anywhere  at  night  or  any  other  time  which  you 
would  not  want  me  or  your  mother  to  know  about,  why,  then,  if 
you'll  promise  all  these  things,  you  may  come  and  take  hold,  and 
we'll  see  how  we  can  get  along.  You  can  have  till  Monday  to 
think  it  oven' 

*' '  I  don't  want  till  Monday,'  said  Dwight ;  I'll  promise  now.' 
And  young  Moody  began  to  work  in  his  uncle's  shoe  store. 

"  A  remark  the  boy's  uncle  made  to  me  afterward  will  give  an 
idea  of  the  young  man's  lack  of  education  at  this  time.  The  uncle 
said  that  when  Dwight  read  his  Bible  out  loud  he  couldn't  make 
anything  more  out  of  it  than  he  could  out  of  the  chattering  of  a 
lot  of  blackbirds.  Many  of  the  words  were  so  far  beyond  the  boy 
that  he  left  them  out  entirely  when  he  read,  and  the  majority  of  the 
others  he  mangled  fearfully.'! 


CHAPTER  IV 

His  Mother 

EVOTION  to  his  mother  was  a  duty  and  a  privilege  second 
only  to   devotion   to  his  God,  in  the   mind  of   Mr.  Moody. 
When   at   home   in    Northfield,  he  never  failed  to  look  in 
upon  his  mother  in  her  cottage  early  every  morning,  to  give  her  a 
hearty  greeting,  and  to  see  that  she  was  provided  with  every  com- 
fort and  many  luxuries. 

When  away,  no  matter  how  many  times  a  day  he  preached, 
nor  how  many  informal  meetings  he  personally  conducted,  a  letter 
was  posted  to  his  mother  at  frequent  intervals  in  which  she  was 
told  at  length  of  the  success  of  the  meetings. 

A  Picture  Never  to  be  Forgotten 

During  the  last  years  of  her  life,  when  failing  health  prevented 
her  from  attending  public  worship,  the  devoted  son  never  forgot 
the  aged  mother,  and  he  often  arranged  for  her  to  hear  the  noted 
speakers  and  singers  of  the  conferences. 

There  is  one  picture  associated  with  Northfield  I  can  never  for- 
get. It  had  to  do  with  one  of  the  summer  conferences.  Some  one 
had  been  asking  about  Mr.  Moody's  mother,  and  he  had  spoken  to 
a  few  of  those  who  gathered  about  him  and  said,  "  We  might  have 
a  little  service  just  at  her  house  on  the  lawn,  for  she  is  not  able  to 
be  out ; "  and  so  a  number  of  distinguished  Christian  workers 
gathered  just  outside  her  window,  sang  the  hymn  she  loved,  prayed 
God's  special  blessing  upon  her  and  her  distinguished  son,  and  then 

(57) 


58  HIS  MOTHER 

one  after  the  other  spoke  some  word  of  appreciation  of  their  visit 
to  Northfield.  I  was  standing  just  by  Mr.  Moody's  side,  and  I 
heard  him  say  to  one  of  his  friends,  "  I  always  thought  she  had 
such  a  beautiful  face,"  and  as  he  looked  at  her  the  tears  started  in 
his  own  eyes,  rolled  down  his  cheeks,  and  he  said  with  much  emotion 
to  a  distinguished  English  Christian  standing  by  his  side,  "  I  think 
she  has  been  the  best  mother  in  the  world." 

His   Mother's   Blessing 

Once  again  when  many  young  men  were  gathered  from  all 
over  the  eastern  part  of  our  country  in  the  World's  Students' 
Conference,  Mr.  Moody  said  : 

"  You  know  my  mother  is  an  old  lady.  She  is  too  feeble  to 
attend  these  meetings.  She  is  deeply  interested  in  this  work,  and 
she  has  prayed  earnestly  for  its  success.  I  want  her  to  hear  some 
of  you  speak  and  sing.  We  are  goijig  up  the  mountain  this  after- 
noon to  pray  for  the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  Meet  me  at  my 
house  at  three  o'clock.  We  will  have  a  little  service  there,  and 
then  I  want  you  to  go  on  to  my  mother's  home,  and  I  want  some  of 
you  to  speak,  and  we  will  all  sing. 

"  I  want  you  to  receive  my  mother's  blessing  before  we  go  to 
the  mountains  to  pray,  for  next  to  the  blessing  of  God  I  place  that 
of  my  mother." 

The  three  hundred  anxious  pilgrims  who  gathered  on  Mr. 
Moody's  spacious  lawn  that  afternoon,  and  who,  after  a  brief  service 
of  song  and  prayer,  journeyed  on  to  the  mother's  cottage  and  later 
to  the  mountain  top,  presented  a  picture  never  to  be  forgotten 
by  the  members  of  that  company. 

Much   that   is  here  written    is  his  own  words  concerning-  her. 

"  I  have  an  old  mother  away  down  in  the  Connecticut  Moun- 
tains," Mr.   Moody  used  to  say,  "and  I  have  been  in  the  habit  of 


HIS  AI OTHER  6i 

going  to  see  her  every  year  for  twenty  years.  Suppose  I  go  there 
and  say,  '  Mother,  you  were  very  kind  to  me  when  I  was  young — 
you  were  very  good  to  me  ;  when  father  died  you  worked  hard  for 
us  all  to  keep  us  together,  and  so  I  have  come  to  see  you, 
because  it  is  my  duty.'  Then  she  would  say  to  me,  '  Well,  my  son, 
if  you  only  come  to  see  me,  because  it  is  your  duty,  you  need  not 
come  again.'  And  that  is  the  way  with  a  great  many  servants  of 
God.  They  work  for  Him,  because  it  is  their  duty — not  for  love. 
Let  us  abolish  this  word  dtity,  and  feel  that  it  Is  only  a  privilege  to 
work  for  God,  and  let  us  try  to  remember  that  what  is  done  merely 
from  a  sense  of  duty  is  not  acceptable  to  God." 

And  so  it  was.  Year  after  year,  in  the  very  heat  of  those 
spiritual  campaigns  which  brought  him  prominently  before  the  peo- 
ple of  the  two  continents,  Mr.  Moody  would  slip  away  regularly  to 
the  spot  where,  amid  the  serene  surroundings  of  the  Northfield 
hills,  his  mother  sat  with  her  thoughts  upon  him  and  his  work, 
praising  God  who  had  permitted  her  boy  to  become  the  instrument 
of  so  much  blessing. 

Her  Puritan  Ancestry 

Betsey  Holton,  the  mother  of  Dwight  L.  Moody,  was  a  descend- 
ant in  the  fifth  generation  of  William  Holton,  one  of  the  first  settlers 
of  Northfield.  In  fact,  this  ancestor  was  one  of  that  committee  of 
the  General  Council  of  Massachusetts  which  laid  out  the  plantation 
of  Northfield,  after  it  had  been  purchased  from  the  Indians  in  1673. 
The  marriage  of  Betsey  Holton  to  Edwin  Moody  united  two  strains 
of  old  Puritan  blood.  Doubtless  this  lineagfe  accounts  in  no  slia^ht 
degree  for  the  restless  energy  and  dogged  earnestness  of  the  son, 
Dwiofht. 

"  I  always  thought  that  Dwight  would  be  one  thing  or  the  other," 
the  dear  old  woman  once  remarked.  Where  others  had  failed  to 
see,  she  had  early  recognized  the  hardiness  of  the  boy's  character, 


€3  HIS  MOTHER 

• — a  hardiness  which  she  must  have  seen  through  its  very  kinship 
with  her  own.  For  her  schooHng  had  not  been  easy.  Left  a  widow 
with  nine  children,  a  small  house,  and  an  acre  or  so  of  heavily 
mortgaged  land,  she  had  taken  upon  her  womanly  shoulders  the 
full  responsibility  of  bringing  up  her  family.  Tilling  the  ground, 
and  doing  odd  jobs  for  the  neighbors,  she  continued  to  scrape 
together  enough  to  keep  her  children  fed  and  clothed,  although 
the  margin  between  plenty  and  want  was  frequently  so  slim  as  to 
bar  out  comfort.  There  were  times  when  no  food  seemed  forthcom- 
ing ;  but  a  Providence  whose  care  extends  even  to  the  sparrows  did 
not  permit  the  burden  to  become  too  heavy  for  this  widowed  mother, 
althoueh  her  resources  were  often  taxed  to  the  utmost. 


•fc. 


Young  Moody  at  the  Village  School 

Every  day  she  taught  the  children  a  little  Bible  lesson,  and  on 
Sundays  accompanied  them  to  the  Unitarian  Sunday  school.  They 
were  sent,  too,  to  the  village  school.  Dwight  was  as  loth  as  the 
average  young  boy  to  endure  the  discipline  of  the  school-room.  It 
is  not  hard  to  picture  him  "  with  shining  morning  face,  creeping 
like  snail  unwillingly  to  school."  But  the  wise  mother  knew.  Seeds 
were  being  scattered  in  the  fertile  heart  and  mind  of  the  boy;  and 
if  they  did  not  seem  to  sprout  at  once,  perhaps  it  was  for  the  very 
reason  that  they  had  not  been  sown  in  a  shallow  soil. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  Cuyler,  when  he  first  met  Mrs.  Moody, 
turned  to  her  son,  and  said,  "  I  see  now  where  you  got  your  vim 
and  your  hard  sense  ! "  Others  remarked  the  same  resemblance  of 
the  son  to  his  mother.  I  speak  of  this  merely  to  make  it  evident 
how  much  he  owed  her. 

However  completely  she  came  into  sympathy  with  her  son's 
work  in  later  years,  at  the  outset  of  his  labors  his  mother  did  not 
give    him    her   sanction.     She    herself  was  a  member  of   a    non- 


HIS  MOTHER  6^^ 

evangelical  church.     For  a  long  time  she  did  not  even  hear  her  son 

preach.      How  he  finally   not  only  convinced  her  of  his  fitness  for 

his  work,  but  also  became  the  means  of  leading  her  into  the  higher 

life  has  been  related  by  a  close  friend  of  the  family  in  the  following 

words  : 

His  Mother's  Conversion 

"  In  1875  ^^  returned  to  his  home  in  Northfield  to  preach, 
shortly  after  coming  back  to  America  from  one  or  his  great  London 
successes.  The  family  still  lived  on  the  old  farm,  and  still  drove  to 
town  to  Sunday  meeting  in  the  old  farm  wagon,  just  as  they  used 
to  do  in  the  days  gone  by.  Most  of  the  members  of  the  family 
were  going  to  drive  to  town  that  morning  to  hear  Dwight  preach. 
The  mother  startled  a  daughter  by  saying  to  her : 

"  '  I  don't  suppose  there  would  be  room  in  the  wagon  for  me 
this  morning,  would  there  ?' 

"  No  one  had  ever  thouyfht  of  the  mother  unbendin^f  and  ofo- 
ing  to  hear  her  son. 

"  '  Of  course  there  will  be  room,  mother,'  said  the  daughter. 

"And  the  mother  was  taken  down  to  the  church  with  the  rest. 
Mr.  Moody  preached  from  the  fifty-first  Psalm,  and  preached  with 
a  fervor  that  was  probably  inspired  by  the  presence  of  his  mother. 
When  those  who  wished  prayer  were  asked  to  arise,  old  Mrs. 
Moody  stood  up. 

"The  son  was  completely  overcome,  and,  turning  to  B.  F. 
Jacobs,  now  of  Chicago,  said  with  emotion,  'You  pray,  Jacobs,  I 
cant. 

When  he  returned  to  Northfield  after  some  evangelical  tour, 
Mr.  Moody  would  invariably  drive  directly  to  see  his  mother,  to 
receive  her  welcome,  even  before  joining  his  immediate  family. 
Sitting  in  her  sunny  room  the  kindly,  keen,  old  lady  would  give  to 
her  son  kernels  of  sound  wisdom  with  the  blessing  of  her  approval. 


64  ^IS  MOTHER 

She  was  permitted  to  remain  in  this  world  until  her  ninety- 
first  year.  When  at  the  last  she  began  to  sink,  it  was  not  thought 
by  those  about  her  that  there  was  any  immediate  danger,  and  Mr. 
Moody,  who  was  at  the  time  conducting  services  in  a  distant  city, 
was  not  informed  as  to  the  state  of  her  health.  But  toward  the 
close  of  a  week  of  meetings  the  evangelist  grew  restless.  He  felt 
a  strange  intuition  that  his  presence  was  needed  at  home,  and,  for 
no  other  reason,  he  canceled  his  engagement  and  started  for  North- 
field.      He  arrived  in  time  to  receive  her  blessing. 

At  his  mother's  funeral,  acting  upon  an  impulse,  Mr.  Moody 
delivered  a  touching  tribute  to  her  memory.  Mrs.  William  R. 
Moody  had  concluded  her  song  "  Crossing  the  Bar,"  when  the 
evangelist  rose  from  his  place  with  the  family,  and,  bearing  in  his 
hands  the  old  family  Bible,  and  a  worn  book  of  devotions,  came 
forward.      Standing  by  the  body  of  his  mother,  he  said  : 

His  Tribute  to  His   Mother 

"  It  is  not  the  custom,  perhaps,  for  a  son  to  take  part  in  such 
an  occasion.  If  I  can  control  myself  I  would  like  to  say  a  few 
words.  It  is  a  great  honor  to  be  the  son  of  such  a  mother.  I  do 
not  know  where  to  begin  ;  I  could  not  praise  her  enough.  In  the 
first  place  my  mother  was  a  very  wise  woman.  In  one  sense  she 
was  wiser  than  Solomon  ;  she  knew  how  to  bring  up  her  children. 
She  had  nine  children  and  they  all  loved  their  home.  She  won 
their  hearts,  their  affections,  she  could  do  anything  with  them. 

"  Whenever  I  wanted  real  sound  counsel  I  used  to  go  to  my 
mother.  I  have  traveled  a  good  deal  and  seen  a  good  many 
mothers,  but  I  never  saw  one  who  had  such  tact  as  she  had.  She 
so  bound  her  children  to  her  that  it  was  a  great  calamity  to  have 
to  leave  home.  I  had  two  brothers  that  lived  in  Kansas  and  died 
there.     Their  great  longing  was  to  get  back  to  their  mother.     My 


HIS  MOTHER  65 

brother  who  died  in  Kansas  a  short  time  aofo  had  been  looking 
over  the  Greenfield  papers  for  some  time  to  see  if  he  could  not 
buy  a  farm  in  this  locality.  He  had  a  good  farm  there,  but  he  was 
never  satisfied  ;  he  wanted  to  get  back  to  mother.  That  is  the 
way  she  won  them  to  herself.  I  have  heard  something  within  the 
last  forty-eight  hours  that  nearly  broke  my  heart.  I  merely  men- 
tion it  to  show  what  a  character  she  was.  My  eldest  sister,  her 
oldest  daughter,  told  me  that  the  first  year  after  my  father  died  she 
wept  herself  to  sleep  every  night.  Yet,  she  was  always  bright  and 
cheerful  in  the  presence  of  her  children,  and  they  never  knew  any- 
thing about  it.  Her  sorrows  drove  her  to  Him,  and  in  her  own 
room,  after  we  were  asleep,  I  would  wake  up  and  hear  her  praying, 
and  sometimes  I  would  hear  her  weeping.  She  would  be  sure  her 
children  were  all  asleep  before  she  would  pour  out  her  tears. 

It  is  a  Great  Thing  to   Have  Such  a  Mother 

"  And  there  was  another  thing  remarkable  about  my  mother. 
If  she  loved  one  child  more  than  another,  no  one  ever  found  it  out. 
Isaiah,  he  was  her  first  boy  ;  she  could  not  get  along  without  Isaiah. 
And  Cornelia,  she  was  her  first  girl ;  she  could  not  get  along  with- 
out Cornelia,  for  she  had  to  take  care  of  the  twins.  And  George, 
she  couldn't  live  without  George.  What  could  she  ever  have  done 
without  George  ?  He  staid  right  by  her  through  thick  and  thin. 
She  couldn't  live  without  George.  And  Edwin,  he  bore  the  name 
of  her  husband.  And  Dwight,  I  don't  know  what  she  thought  of 
him.  And  Luther,  he  was  the  dearest  of  all,  because  he  had  to  go 
away  to  live.  He  was  always  homesick  to  get  back  to  mother. 
And  Warren,  he  was  the  youngest  when  father  died  ;  it  seemed  as 
if  he  was  dearer  than  all  the  rest.  And  Sam  and  Lizzie,  the  twins, 
they  were  the  light  of  her  great  sorrow. 


66  HIS  MOTHER 

She  never  complained  of  her  children.  It  is  a  great  thing  to 
have  such  a  mother,  and  I  feel  like  standing  up  here  to-day  to 
praise  her.  And  just  here  I  want  to  say  before  I  forget  it,  you 
don't  know  how  she  appreciated  the  kindness  which  was  shown  her 
in  those  days  of  early  struggle.  Sometimes  I  would  come  home 
and  say,  such  a  man  did  so  and  so,  and  she  would  say,  '  Don't  say 
that,  Dwight;  he  was  kind  to  me,' 

"  The  Biggest  Load  of  Wood  I    Ever  Saw  " 

"  My  father  died  a  bankrupt,  and  the  creditors  came  and  swept 
everything  we  had.  They  took  everything,  even  the  kindling 
wood ;  and  there  came  on  a  snowstorm,  and  the  next  morning 
mother  said  we  would  have  to  stay  in  bed  until  school-time,  because 
there  was  no  wood  to  make  a  fire.  Then,  all  at  once,  I  heard  some 
one  chopping  wood,  and  it  was  my  Uncle  Sam.  I  tell  you  I  have 
always  had  a  warm  heart  for  that  uncle  for  that  act.  And  that 
night  there  came  the  biggest  load  of  wood  I  ever  saw  in  my  life.  It 
took  two  yoke  of  oxen  to  draw  it.  It  was  that  uncle  that  brought 
it.  That  act  followed  me  all  through  life,  and  a  good  many  acts,  in 
fact.  Mr.  Everett,  the  pastor  of  the  Unitarian  Church,  I  remember 
how  kind  he  was  in  those  days.  I  want  to  testify  to-day  how  my 
mother  appreciated  that, 

"  I  remember  the  first  thing  I  did  to  earn  money  was  to  turn 
the  neighbor's  cows  up  on  Strowbridge  Mountain.  I  got  a  cent  a 
week  for  it.  I  never  thought  of  spending  it  on  myself.  It  was 
to  go  to  mother.  It  went  into  the  common  treasury.  And  I 
remember  when  Georee  ^ot  work  we  asked  who  was  Sfoin";'  to  milk 
the  cows.  Mother  said  she  would  milk.  She  also  made  our  clothes, 
and  wove  the  cloth,  and  spun  the  yarn,  and  darned  our  stockings ; 
and  there  was  never  any  complaining. 


HIS  MOTHER  67 

"  I  thought  so  much  of  my  mother  I  cannot  say  half  enough. 
That  dear  face !  There  was  no  sweeter  face  on  earth.  Fifty  years 
I  have  been  coming  back  and  was  always  glad  to  get  back.  When 
I  got  within  fifty  miles  of  home  I  always  grew  restless  and  walked 
up  and  down  the  car.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  the  train  would  never 
get  to  Northfield.  For  sixty-eight  years  she  has  lived  on  that  hill, 
and  when  I  came  back  after  dark,  I  always  looked  to  see  the  light 
in  mother's  window. 

In  Time  to  Receive  Her  Blessing 

"When  I  got  home  last  Sunday  night — I  was  going  to  take 
the  four  o'clock  train  from  New  York  and  get  here  at  twelve  ; 
I  had  some  business  to  do  ;  but  I  suppose  it  was  the  good 
Lord  that  sent  me  ;  I  took  the  twelve  o'clock  train  and  got  here  at 
five — I  went  in  to  my  mother.  I  was  so  glad  I  got  back  in  time  to 
be  recognized.  I  said,  '  Mother,  do  you  know  me  ?'  She  said,  '  I 
guess  I  do.'  I  like  that  word,  that  Yankee  word  'guess,'  The 
children  were  all  with  her  when  she  was  taking  her  departure.  At 
last  I  called,  *  Mother,  mother.'  No  answer.  She  had  fallen 
asleep  ;  but  I  shall  call  her  again  by-and-by.  Friends,  it  is  not  a 
time  of  mourning.  I  want  you  to  understand  we  do  not  mourn. 
We  are  proud  that  we  had  such  a  mother.  We  have  a  wonderful 
legacy  left  us. 

"  One  day  mother  sent  for  me.  I  went  to  see  what  she  wanted, 
and  she  said  she  wanted  to  divide  her  things.  I  said,  '  Well, 
mother,  we  don't  want  anything  you've  got ;  we  want  you.  We 
have  got  you,  and  that's  all  we  want.'  'Yes,  but  I  want  to  do 
something.'  I  said  to  her,  '  Then  write  out  what  you  want,  and  I 
will  carry  it  out.'  That  didn't  satisfy  her.  Finally  she  said, 
*  D wight,  I  want  them  all  to  have  something.'  That  was  my 
mother,  and  that  was  the  way  she  bound  us  to  her. 


68  HIS  MOTHER 

"  Now,  I  have  brought  the  old  Bible,  the  family  Bible,  for  it 
all  came  from  that  book.  That  is  about  the  only  book  we  had  in 
the  house  when  father  died,  and  out  of  the  book  she  taueht  us. 
And  if  my  mother  has  been  a  blessing  to  this  world,  it  is  because 
she  drank  at  this  fountain.  I  have  read  twice  at  family  worship, 
and  will  read  here  a  few  verses  which  she  has  marked. 

Verses  She  Marked 

"  '  Who  can  find  a  virtuous  woman  ?  for  her  price  is  far  above 
rubies.     The  heart  of  her  husband  doth  safely  trust  in  her.' 

"  She  has  been  a  widow  for  fifty-four  years,  and  yet  she  loved 
her  husband  the  day  she  died  as  much  as  she  ever  did.  I  never 
heard  one  word,  and  she  never  taught  her  children  to  do  anything 
but  just  reverence  our  father.     She  loved  him  right  up  to  the  last. 

"  '  She  seeketh  wool  and  flax,  and  worketh  willingly  with  her 
hands.' 

"  That  is  my  mother. 

"  '  She  considereth  a  field  and  buyeth  it ;  with  the  fruit  of  her 
hands  she  planteth  a  vineyard.  She  girdeth  her  loins  with  strength 
and  strengtheneth  her  arms.  She  perceiveth  that  her  merchandise 
is  good,  her  candle  goeth  not  out  by  night.' 

"  Widow  Moody's  light  had  burned  on  that  hill  for  fifty-four 
years,  in  that  one  room.  We  built  a  room  for  her,  where  she  could 
be  more  comfortable,  but  she  was  not  often  there.  There  was  just 
one  room  where  she  wanted  to  be.  Her  children  were  born  there, 
her  first  sorrow  came  there,  and  that  was  where  God  had  met  her. 
That  is  the  place  she  liked  to  stay,  where  her  children  liked  to 
meet  her,  where  she  worked  and  toiled  and  wept. 

"  *  She  stretcheth  out  her  hands  to  the  poor  ;  yea,  she  reacheth 
forth  her  hands  to  the  needy.' 

"  Now,  there  is  one  thing  about  my  mother,  she  never  turned 
away  any  poor  from  her  home.     There  was  one  time  we  got  down 


W^ 


^i*ii^8^pw*^^ 


HIS  MOTHER  71 

to  less  than  a  loaf  of  bread.  Some  one  came  along  hungry,  and 
she  says,  '  Now,  children,  shall  I  cut  your  slices  a  little  thinner  and 
give  some  to  this  person  ?'  And  we  all  voted  for  her  to  do  it. 
That  is  the  way  she  taught  us. 

"  '  She  is  not  afraid  of  the  snow  for  her  household  ;  for  all  her 
household  are  clothed  with  scarlet.' 

"  She  would  let  the  neighbors'  boys  in  all  over  the  house,  and 
track  in  snow  ;  and  when  there  was  going  to  be  a  party  she  would 
say,  'Who  will  stay  with  me  ?  I  will  be  all  alone  ;  why  don't  you  ask 
them  to  come  here  ?'  In  that  way  she  kept  them  all  at  home,  and 
knew  where  her  children  were.  The  door  was  never  locked  at 
night  until  she  knew  they  were  all  in  bed,  safe  and  secure.  Nothing 
was  too  hard  for  her  if  she  could  only  spare  her  children. 

I  Honor  Her  for  the  Punishment  I  Got 
"The  seven  boys  were  like  Hannibal,  whose  mother  took  him 
to  the  altar  and  made  him  swear  vengeance  on  Rome.  She  took  us 
to  the  altar  and  made  us  swear  vengeance  on  whiskey,  and  every- 
thing that  was  an  enemy  to  the  human  family ;  and  we  have  been 
fighting  it  ever  since  and  will  to  the  end  of  our  days. 

"  My  mother  used  to  punish  me.  I  honor  her  for  that.  I  do 
not  object  to  punishment.  She  used  to  send  me  out  to  get  a  stick. 
It  would  take  a  long  time  to  get  it,  and  then  I  used  to  get  a  dead 
stick  if  I  could.  She  would  try  it  and,  if  it  would  break  easily, 
then  I  had  to  go  and  get  another.  She  was  not  in  a  hurry  and 
did  not  tell  me  to  hurry,  because  she  knew  all  the  time  that  I  was 
being  punished.  I  would  go  out  and  be  gone  a  long  time.  When 
I  came  in,  she  would  tell  me  to  take  off  my  coat,  and  then  she 
would  put  the  birch  on ;  and  I  remember  once  I  said,  '  That 
doesn't  hurt'  She  put  it  on  all  the  harder,  and  I  never  said  that 
the  second  time.  And  once  in  awhile  she  would  take  me  and  she 
would  say,  '  You  know  I  would  rather  put   this  on  myself  than  to 


72  ffIS  MOTHER 

put  it  on  you.'  I  would  look  up  and  see  tears  in  her  eyes.  That 
was  enough  for  me. 

"  What  more  can  I  say  ?  You  have  lived  with  her  and  you 
know  her.  I  want  to  give  you  one  verse,  her  creed.  Her  creed 
was  very  short.  Do  you  know  what  it  was  ?  I  will  tell  you  what 
it  was.  When  everything  went  against  her,  this  vv^as  her  stay,  '  My 
trust  is  in  God.  My  trust  is  in  God.'  And  when  the  neighbors 
would  come  in  and  tell  her  to  bind  out  her  children,  she  would  say, 
'Not  as  long  as  I  have  these  two  hands.'  'Well,'  they  would 
say,  '  you  know  one  woman  cannot  bring  up  seven  boys  ;  they  will 
turn  up  in  jail,  or  with  a  rope  around  their  necks.'  She  toiled  on, 
and  none  of  us  went  to  jail,  and  none  of  us  has  had  a  rope  around 
his  neck.  And  if  every  one  had  a  mother  like  that  mother,  if  the 
world  was  mothered  by  that  kind  of  mothers,  there  would  be  no 
use  for  jails. 

'•  Here  is  a  book  (a  little  book  of  devotions)  ;  this  and  the 
Bible  were  about  all  the  books  she  had  in  those  days;  and  every 
morning  she  would  stand  us  up  and  read  out  of  this  book.  All 
through  the  book  I  find  things  marked. 

"  Every  Saturday  night — we  used  to  begin  to  observe  the 
Sabbath  at  sundown  Saturday  night,  and  at  sundown  Sunday  night 
we  would  run  out  and  throw  up  our  caps  and  let  off  our  jubilant 
spirits — this  is  what  she  would  give  us  Saturday  night,  and  it  has  gone 
with  me  through  life.      Not  all  of  it,  I  could  not  remember  it  all: 

'  How  pleasant  it  is  on  Saturday  night 
When  I've  tried  all  the  week  to  be  good.' 

"  And  on  Sunday  she  always  started  us  off  to  Sunday  school. 
It  was  not  a  debatable  question  whether  we  should  go  or  not.  All 
the  family  attended. 

*'  I  do  not  know,  of  course,  we  do  not  know,  whether  the 
departed  ones  are  conscious  of  what  is  going  on  on  earth.     If  I 


HIS  MOTHER  73 

knew  that  she  was  I  would  send  a  message  that  we  are  coming- 
after  her.  If  I  could,  I  believe  I  would  send  a  message  after  her, 
not  only  for  the  family,  and  the  town,  but  for  the  Seminary.  She 
was  always  so  much  interested  in  the  young  ladies  of  the  Seminary. 
She  seemed  to  be  as  young  as  any  of  them,  and  entered  into  the 
joys  of  the  young  people  just  as  much  as  any  one.  I  want  to  say  to 
the  young  ladies  of  the  Seminary,  who  acted  as  maids  of  honor  to 
escort  my  mother  down  to  the  church  this  morning,  that  I  want 
you  to  trust  my  mother's  Saviour. . 

"  I  want  to  say  to  the  young  men  of  Mt.  Hermon,  you  are 
going  to  have  a  great  honor  to  escort  mother  to  her  last  resting- 
place.  Her  prayers  for  you  ascended  daily  to  the  throne  of  grace. 
Now,  I  am  going  to  give  you  the  best  I  have  ;  I  am  going  to  do 
the   best   I  can  ;   I  am  going  to  lay  her  away  with  her  face  toward 

Hermon. 

"  She  Was  True   as  Sunlight  " 

"  I  think  she  is  one  of  the  noblest  characters  this  world-  has 
ever  seen.  She  was  true  as  sunlight ;  I  never  knew  that  woman  to 
deceive  me. 

"  I  want  to  thank  Dr.  Scofield  for  the  comforting  words  he  has 
brought  us  to-day.  It  is  a  day  of  rejoicing,  not  of  regret.  She 
went  without  pain,  without  a  struggle,  just  like  a  person  going  to 
sleep.  And  now  we  are  to  lay  her  body  away  to  await  His  coming 
in  resurrection  power.  When  I  see  her  in  the  morning  she  is  to 
have  a  glorious  body.  The  body  Moses  had  on  the  Mount  of 
Transfiguration  was  a  better  body  than  God  buried  on  Pisgah. 
When  we  see  Elijah  he  will  have  a  glorious  body.  That  dear 
mother,  when  I  see  her  again,  is  going  to  have  a  glorified  body. 
[Looking  at  her  face]  God  bless  you,  mother  ;  we  love  you  still. 
Death  has  only  increased  our  love.  Good-bye  for  a  little  while- 
mother.     Let  us  pray." 


CHAPTER  V. 

His  Conversion 

D  WIGHT   L.   MOODY  was   not  the  boy  to   forget  his  com- 
pact with  his  uncle.      He  went  to  church    every  Sunday — 
because   he    had    promised   to    go, — attending  the    Mount 
Vernon  Congregational  Church,  of  which  the  Rev.  Dr.  E.  N.  Kirk 
was  pastor. 

Dr.  Kirk  was  an  excellent  preacher,  but  young  Moody  was  at 
a  stage  where  all  sermons  sounded  alike  to  him.  Frequently  he 
would  fall  asleep  during  service,  at  least  until  an  occasion  when 
he  was  suddenly  awakened  from  his  complete  repose  by  a  stern- 
faced  deacon,  who,  as  he  roused  the  lad  from  his  slumbers,  pointed 
to  Dr.  Kirk,  who  was  preaching — -as  much  as  to  say,  "  Keep  your 
eyes  on  him  !"  Thereafter  Dwight  remained  awake.  Moreover, 
for  lack  of  something  else  to  do,  he  began  to  listen  to  the  sermons. 
"  Eor  the  first  time  in  my  life,"  he  said  in  later  days,  "  I  felt  as  if 
the  preacher  were  preaching  altogether  at  me." 

His  First  Acquaintance  with  Mr.  E.  D.  Kimball 
One  Sunday  the  young  man  appeared  in  the  Sunday  school  of 
Mount  Vernon  Church.  The  superintendent,  Mr.  Palmer,  to  whom 
he  gave  his  name,  took  him  to  the  class  taught  by  Mr.  Edward  D. 
Kimball,  and  he  took  his  seat  among  the  other  boys.  Says  Mr. 
Kimball,  "  I  handed  him  a  closed  Bible  and  told  him  the  lesson 
was  in  John.  The  boy  took  the  book  and  began  running  over  the 
leaves  with  his  finger  away  at  the  first  of  the  volume  looking  for 
John.  Out  of  the  corners  of  their  eyes  the  boys  saw  what  he  wa^ 
74 


HIS  CONVERSION  75 

doing  and,  detecting  his  ignorance  glanced  slyly  and  knowingly  at 
one  another,  but  not  rudely.  I  gave  the  boys  just  one  hasty  glance 
of  reproof.  That  was  enough — their  equanimity  was  restored 
immediately.  I  quietly  handed  Moody  my  own  book,  open  at  the 
right  place,  and  took  his.  I  did  not  suppose  the  boy  could  possibly 
have  noticed  the  glances  exchanged  between  the  other  boys  over 
his  ignorance,  but  it  seems  from  remarks  in  later  years  that  he  did, 
and  he  said  in  reference  to  my  little  act  in  exchanging  books  that 
he  would  stick  by  the  fellow  who  had  stood  by  him  and  had  clone 
him  a  turn  like  that." 

This  Sunday  school  teacher  was  not  one  of  the  ordinary  type. 
Mere  literal  instruction  on  Sunday  did  not  satisfy  his  ideal  of  the 
teacher's  duty.  He  knew  his  boys,  and,  if  he  knew  them,  it  was 
because  he  studied  them,  because  he  became  acquainted  with  their 
occupations  and  aims,  visiting  them  during  the  week.  It  was  his 
custom,  moreover,  to  find  opportunity  to  give  to  his  boys  an 
opportunity  to  use  his  experience  in  seeking  the  better  things  of 
the  Spirit.  The  day  came  when  he  resolved  to  speak  to  young 
Moody  about  Christ,  and  about  his  soul. 

Just  Ready  for  the   Light 

""  I  started  down  town  to  Holton's  shoe  store,"  says  Mr.  Kim- 
ball. "  When  I  was  nearly  there,  I  began  to  wonder  whether  I 
ought  to  go  just  then,  during  business  hours.  And  I  thought 
maybe  my  mission  might  embarass  the  boy,  that  when  I  went  away 
the  other  clerks  might  ask  who  I  was,  and  when  they  learned 
might  taunt  Moody  and  ask  if  I  was  trying  to  make  a  good  boy 
out  of  him.  While  I  was  pondering  over  it  all,  I  passed  the  store 
without  noticing  it.  Then  when  I  found  I  had  gone  by  the  door, 
I  determined  to  make  a  dash  for  it  and  have  it  over  at  once.  I 
found  Moody  in  the  back  part  of  the   store  wrapping  up   shoes  in 


^e  HIS  CONVERSION 

paper  and  putting  them  on  shelves.  I  went  up  to  him  and  put  n 
hand  on  his  shoulder,  and  as  I  leaned  over  I  placed  my  foot  upc 
a  shoe  box.  Then  I  made  my  plea,  and  I  feel  that  it  was  really 
very  weak  one.  I  don't  know  just  what  words  I  used,  nor  cou 
Mr.  Moody  tell.  I  simply  told  him  of  Christ's  love  for  him  ai 
the  love  Christ  wanted  in  return.  That  was  all  there  was  of  it. 
think  Mr.  Moody  said  afterward  that  there  were  tears  in  my  eye 
It  seemed  that  the  young  man  was  just  ready  for  the  light  that  th( 
broke  upon  him,  for  there  at  once  in  the  back  of  that  shoe  store 
Boston  the  future  great  evangelist  gave  himself  and  his  life  to  Chrisi 
Many  years  afterward  Mr.  Moody  himself  told  the  story 
that  day.  "  When  I  was  in  Boston,"  he  said,  "  I  used  to  attend 
Sunday  school  class,  and  one  day  I  recollect  my  teacher  car 
around  behind  the  counter  of  the  shop  I  was  at  work  in,  and  p 
his  hand  upon  my  shoulder,  and  talked  to  me  about  Christ  and  r 
soul.  I  had  not  felt  that  I  had  a  soul  till  then.  I  said  to  myse] 
'  This  is  a  very  strange  thing.  Here  is  a  man  who  never  saw  r 
till  lately,  and  he  is  weeping  over  my  sins,  and  I  never  shed  a  te 
about  them.'  But  I  understand  it  now,  and  know  what  it  is 
have  a  passion  for  men's  souls  and  weep  over  their  sins.  I  do; 
remember  what  he  said,  but  I  can  feel  the  power  of  that  mai 
hand  on  my  shoulder  to-night.  It  was  not  long  after  that  I  w 
brought  into  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

Applies  for  Admission  into  the  Church. 

One  of  his  first  steps  after  his  conversion  was  to  apply  f 
admission  into  the  Mount  Vernon  Church. 

It  is  frequently  stated  that  after  his  application  for  memb( 
ship    in    the    Mount    Vernon    Church,    he    was    looked    upon 
unfavorably  as  a  candidate  that  he  was  kept  waiting  for  a  ye 
before  he  was  granted  admission.     It  has  also  been  said,  that  ev 


HIS  CONVERSION  77 

after  his  acceptance  by  the  church  his  remarks  in  the  church 
meetings  were  so  far  from  edifying  that  his  pastor  was  obhged  to 
suggest  to  him,  that  he  could  serve  the  Lord  much  more  acceptably 
by  keeping  silence. 

While  there  is  a  foundation  of  truth  in  these  statements,  they 
must  not  be  taken  too  literally.  Mr.  Moody  was  undoubtedly  at 
that  time  ignorant  of  many  of  the  most  important  reasons  of  his 
profession  ;  but  Dr.  Kirk's  church  was  a  revival  church,  and  his 
spirit  was  not  such  as  to  deny  the  opportunities  of  grace  to  any  one 
who  deserved  them.  The  Rev.  Dr.  James  M.  Buckley,  editor  of 
the  Christian  Advocate,  has  written  quite  exhaustively  on  this 
matter.      He  has  said  : 

"  Those  sympathizing  with  his  [Dr.  Kirk's]  peculiar  work, 
gathered  about  him.  Among  them  were  such  men  as  Julius  Palmer, 
the  brother  of  Dr.  Ray  Palmer,  the  author  of  '  My  Faith  Looks 
Up  to  Thee ' ;  he  was  one  of  the  deacons,  and  all  the  rest  had  the 
same  sympathies.  Mr.  Kimball  was  not  only  Mr.  Moody's  Sunday 
school  teacher,  and,  as  Mr.  Moody  expressly  informed  us,  the 
means  of  his  conversion,  but  was  also  one  of  the  examining  com- 
mittee. But  the  Mount  Vernon  Church  did  not  receive  a  person 
who  could  not  furnish  evidence  that  he  was  converted,  even  if  he 
was  perfectly  orthodox  in  doctrine. 

True  Evidence. 

"  About  the  time  Mr.  Moody  was  converted,  a  young  man 
came  from  Scotland  with  a  letter  from  a  Presbyterian  church.  He 
could  repeat  the  Shorter  Catechism,  answer  all  doctrinal  questions 
glibly,  but  when  he  was  asked  of  his  position  before  God  as  a 
sinner  and  his  conscious  relation  to  Christ  as  a  Saviour,  he  knew 
nothing  of  it  and  made  no  reply,  except  that  'such  questions  were 
never  asked  him  before '.      He  confessed  that  he  had  simply  '  joined ' 


78  HIS  CONVERSION 

because  he  was  advised  and  expected  to  do  so.  This  young  man 
was  advised  to  wait,  and  brethren  were  appointed  to  try  to  arouse 
in  him  a  consciousness  of  his  need  of  a  Saviour  and  of  a  work  of 
grace,  and  to  point  him  to  the  Lamb  of  God.  About  the  same 
time,  a  young  woman  appHed  who  was  wholly  in  the  dark  on 
'doctrines';  tender,  tearful,  hesitating,  distrustful  of  herself,  she 
could  not  tell  why  she  thought  herself  a  Christian,  but  could  only 
say  that  she  loved  Christ  and  the  prayer  meeting.  One  of  the 
committee  said,  'Do  you  love  God's  people  because  they  are  His?' 
Her  face  brightened,  and  she  said,  '  O,  sir,  is  that  an  evidence?' 
'Yes.'  '  Then  I  am  sure,  I  have  that  if  I  have  no  other,  for  I  love 
to  be  with  Christians  anywhere.'     She  was  promptly  received. 

His  First  Examination 

"  When  Mr.  Moody  appeared  for  examination,  he  was  eighteen 
years  old.  He  had  only  been  in  the  Sunday  school  class  a  few 
weeks ;  he  had  no  idea  and  could  not  tell  what  it  was  to  be  a 
Christian  ;  even  when  aided  by  his  teacher,  whom  he  loved,  he 
could  not  state  what  Christ  had  done  for  him.  The  chief  question 
put  to  him  was  this:  'Mr.  Moody,  what  has  Christ  done  for  us  all 
— for  you — which  entitles  Him  to  our  love  ?'  The  longest  answer  he 
gave  in  the  examination  was  this  :  '  I  do  not  know.  I  think  Christ 
has  done  a  great  deal  for  us,  but  I  do  not  think  of  anything 
particular  as  I  know  of.' 

"  Under  these  circumstances,  as  he  was  a  stranger  to  all  the 
members  of  the  committee,  and  less  than  a  month  had  elapsed  since 
he  began  to  give  any  serious  thought  to  the  salvation  of  his  soul, 
they  deferred  recommending  him  for  admission  to  the  church. 
But  two  of  the  examining  committee  were  specially  designated  to 
watch  over  him  with  kindness,  and  teach  him  '  the  way  of  God 
more  perfectly '. 


HIS  CONVERSION  8i 

"When  he  met  the  committee  again  no  merely  doctrinal 
questions  were  asked  of  him  ;  but  as  his  sincerity  and  earnestness 
were  undoubted  and  he  appeared  to  have  more  light,  it  was  decided 
to  propound  him  for  admission.  About  eight  years  after  this,  and 
when  Mr.  Moody  had  become  prominent  as  an  evangelist,  he 
expressed  his  gratitude  to  one  of  the  officers  of  the  church  for  the 
course  pursued,  and  said  his  conviction  was  that  its  influence  was 
favorable  to  his  growth  in  grace.  He  also  said  he  was  afraid  that 
pastors  and  church  officers  generally  were  falling  into  the  error  of 
hurrying  new  converts  into  a  profession  of  religion.  To  a  person 
of  our  acquaintance  Dr.  Kirk  himself  referred  with  the  deepest 
grief  to  these  imputations  upon  the  Church,  and  declared  them  to 
be  without  foundation  in  truth  ;  as  well  he  might,  for  if  there  ever 
existed  a  man  in  New  England  who  was  free  from  the  spirit  of 
'staid  and  stiff  New  England  orthodoxy',  it  was  Dr.  Kirk. 

/  "  As  for  the  suggestion  to  say  but  little  in  prayer  meeting,  we 
have  little  doubt  that  some  one  suggested  that,  for  Mr.  Moody  has 
told  us  of  his  utter  ignoranee  of  the  evangelical  system.  He  was 
converted,  he  '  wished  to  do  his  duty ',  he  said,  '  whatever  came  to 
his  lips ',  knowing  nothing  about  its  consistency  or  inconsistency  ; 
but  he  acted  on  John  Wesley's  rule,  '  Do  every  religious  duty  as 
you  can  until  you  can  do  it  as  you  would.'  " 

Mr.   Moody's  Life  in  Boston 

One  of  those  who  knew  Mr.  Moody  at  the  time  of  his  con- 
version was  Mr.  Charles  B.  Botsford,  of  Boston.  Shortly  after 
the  death  of  Mr.  Moody,  Mr.  Botsford  related  what  he  knew  of 
the  life  of  Moody  in  Boston. 

"  I  distinctly  recall  my  first  interview  with  Mr.  Moody,  early 
in  1856,"  said  Mr.  Botsford.  "  It  was  at  the  close  of  one  of  the 
Monday  evening  religious  meetings  of  the  Mt.  Vernon  Association 


82  •  HIS  CONVERSION 

of  Young  Men,  formed  several  years  before  by  Dr.  Edward  N. 
Kirk,  for  the  benefit  of  young  men  of  his  church  and  congregation. 
Antedating  the  Y,  M.  C.  A.  by  several  years,  it  continued  a 
vigorous  life  for  several  decades,  and  proved  of  great  value. 

"  A  literary  meeting  alternated  with  a  devotional  meeting.  It 
was  at  this,  his  first  attendance,  at  one  of  the  latter,  that,  in  a 
broken  and  trembling  way,  he  earnestly  stated  his  purpose  to  turn 
over  a  new  leaf  and  lead  a  Christian  life.  When  the  meeting  was 
over  I  took  him  by  the  hand  and  conducted  him  for  the  first  time 
to  the  roomiS  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.,  in  the  old  Tremont  Temple,  to 
attend,  as  was  my  custom,  the  9  o'clock  prayer  and  conference 
meeting.  Moody  spoke,  but  much  more  zealously  than  grammatic- 
ally, and  he  continued  to  be  an  active  participant  in  the  meetings 
from  week  to  week. 

"  Let  the  Leaven  Work  " 

**  After  a  time,  one  of  the  most  cultured  members  complained 
to  Mr.  Moody's  uncle,  a  shoe  dealer  on  Tremont  Row,  between 
Brattle  and  Hanover  streets,  that  his  nephew  was  altogether  too 
zealous  and  conspicuous  in  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  meetings,  saying  that 
he  wished  in  some  way  to  have  the  zealot  restrained.  When  con- 
sulted about  the  matter  I  said :  *  No,  let  the  leaven  work  ! '  The 
world  knows  what  Mr.  Moody  has  since  done,  in,  by  and  for  Y.  M, 
C  A.'s,  to  say  nothing  of  his  other  work. 

"  In  the  meantime  I  had  taken  Moody  to  a  Sunday  morning 
devotional  meeting,  that  I  was  accustomed  to  attend,  in  the  vestry 
of  Dr.  Neal's  [Baptist]  church,  where  the  Boston  University  now 
stands.  At  that  meeting,  also,  with  its  strong  sectarian  atmos- 
phere, Moody  spoke,  and  so  stumbled  in  absolute  disregard  of  the 
Pilgrim's  English,  that,  in  embarrassment,  I  bowed  my  head  on  the 
rail  of  the  seat  before  me.     He  continued  there,  also, 


HIS  CONVERSION  83 

"  It  was  from  this  church,  later,  that  a  good  sister,  more 
zealous  to  steady  and  guard  the  ark  of  the  Lord  than  to  encourage 
unlearned  young  men  to  become  leaders  in  Israel,  went  to  Mr. 
Holton  and  said  :  'If  you  have  any  interest  in  or  regard  for  your 
nephew,  you  had  better  admonish  him  not  to  talk  so  much,  for  he 
is  making  a  fool  of  himself.'     But  still  the  leaven  worked. 

^' May  4,  1856,  Mr.  Moody  united  with  the  Mt.  Vernon 
Church,  where  he  was  a  member  of  Mr.  Kimball's  class  in  the 
Sunday  school.  He  was  not  a  constant  attendant  of  the  mid-week 
devotional  meetings  of  the  church,  for,  as  he  expressed  it,  he  did 
not  'have  liberty'  there  in  his  utterances,  and,  naturally  enough, 
perhaps,  for  the  atmosphere  of  the  meetings  was  strongly  intel- 
lectual and  positively  spiritual,  with  such  leaders  as  Deacons  Palmer, 
Kimball,  Pinkerton  and  Gushing,  with  Dr.  Kirk,  at  the  close,  to 
deepen  and  seal  the  impression." 

A  Changed  Life 

Concerning  his  relations  to  the  Mount  Vernon  Church,  Mr. 
Moody  afterward  said  :  "  When  I  first  became  a  Christian,  I  tried 
to  join  the  church,  but  they  wouldn't  have  me,  because  they  didn't 
believe  I  was  really  converted." 

A  number  of  years  afterward.  Dr.  Kirk  was  attending  the 
anniversary  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign 
Missions,  which  was  held  that  year  in  Chicago.  He  was  enter- 
tained by  Mr.  Moody,  the  man  who  as  a  boy  had  come  into  the 
light,  in  some  measure,  under  his  influence,  and  he  preached  on 
Sunday  in  the  pulpit  of  his  former  parishioner.  When  he  returned 
to  Boston  Dr.  Kirk  called  upon  Mr.  Moody's  uncle,  Mr.  Holton, 
and  said:  "  I  told  our  people  last  evening  that  we  had  every  reason 
to  be  ashamed  of  ourselves.  That  young  Moody,  whom  we 
thought  did  not  know  enough  to  belong  to  our  church  and  Sunday 


84  ^IS  CONVERSION 

school,  is  to-day  exerting  a  wider  influence  for  the  Master  than  any 
other  man  in  the  orreat  Northwest." 

Speaking  of  his  experience  in  passing  from  the  life  of  sin  to 
the  life  of  religion,  Mr.  Moody  once  said :  "  I  used  to  have  a 
terrible  habit  of  swearing.  Whenever  I  would  get  mad,  out  would 
come  the  oaths ;  but  after  I  gave  my  heart  to  Christ,  He  took  the 
oaths  away,  so  that  I  did  not  have  the  least  disposition  to  take 
God's  name  in  vain." 

At  another  time,  when  waited  upon  by  a  journalist,  who 
asked  him  for  a  sketch  of  his  life,  Mr.  Moody  said  :  "  I  was  born 
in  the  flesh  in  1837  ;  I  was  born  in  the  Spirit  in  1856.  What  is 
born  of  the  flesh  may  die  ;  that  which  is  born  of  the  Spirit  w^ill 
live  forever." 

How  Moody  Revenged   Himself  Upon  the  Deacon 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Savage,  of  Chicago,  used  to  tell  of  the  way  in 
which  Mr.  Moody  revenged  himself  upon  one  of  the  deacons  who 
had  been  instrumental  in  keeping  him  waiting  for  admission  to  the 
church.  Mr.  Moody's  action  was,  of  course,  good-natured,  for  he 
not  only  bore  no  malice,  but,  on  the  other  hand,  was  thankful  for 
the  wisdom  which  had  required  of  him  some  sane  understanding 
of  his  own  state  before  he  was  allowed  full  fellowship  with  God's 
people.  The  earnest  inquirer  finds  only  a  stimulus  to  further 
.search  when  his  own  unfitness  is  made  clear  to  him. 

To  return  to  the  story.  It  was  during  the  London  campaign, 
4nd  in  the  midst  of  one  of  the  grreat  meetinofs  in  Exeter  Hall. 
Mr.  Moody,  whose  sharp  eyes  never  missed  a  detail  in  the  great 
audiences  which  he  faced,  saw,  away  back  under  a  gallery,  his  old 
friend,  the  deacon.  The  good  man  was  traveling  at  the  time,  and 
had  come  to  the  meeting  largely  out  of  curiosity.  Mr.  Moody  said 
nothing  until  toward  the  close  of  the  service-     Then  he  suddenly 


HIS  CONVERSION  85 

exclaimed  :  **  I  see  in  the  house  an  eminent  Christian  gentleman 
from  Boston.  Deacon  P.,  come  right  up  to  the  platform ;  the 
people  are  anxious  to  hear  you." 

The  deacon  was  far  from  eager  to  accept  this  hearty  invita- 
tion, but  he  found  that  there  was  no  alternative.  So,  mounting 
the  platform,  he  began  to  speak.  He  told  of  having  been 
acquainted  with  Mr.  Moody  during  the  evangelist's  early  life — of 
the  fact  that  they  had  been  members  of  the  same  church.  Here 
Mr.  Moody  suddenly  interrupted  :  "  Yes,  Deacon,  and  you  kept  me 
out  of  that  church  for  six  months,  because  you  thought  I  did  not 
know  enough  to  join  it."  The  deacon,  at  last  succeeding  in  making 
himself  heard  above  the  roar  of  laughter  which  greeted  Mr. 
Moody's  sally,  retorted  that  it  was  a  privilege  to  any  church  to 
receive  Mr.  Moody  at  all,  even  though  with  considerable  trepids' 
tion,  and  after  long  endeavor  to  know  him  thoroughly. 

How^  HE  Repays  His  Old  Sunday  School  Teacher 
A  number  of  years  after  his  own  conversion  Mr.  Moody 
found  an  opportunity  to  repay  his  old  Sunday  school  teacher  in  kind 
for  the  help  which  Mr.  Kimball  had  given  to  him.  After  a  service 
in  Boston  a  young  man  came  to  Mr,  Moody  and  introduced  him- 
self as  a  son  of  Mr.  Kimball.  "  I'm  glad  to  meet  you,"  said  Mr. 
Moody.  "Are  you  a  Christian?"  The  young  man  admitted  that 
he  was  not,  and  Mr.  Moody  inquired  of  him  as  to  his  age.  "  I  am 
seventeen,"  was  the  reply.  "That  was  just  my  age,  when  your 
father  led  me  to  the  Lord,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  "  and  now  I  want  to 
repay  him  by  leading  his  son  to  Christ." 

The  coincidence  in  age  made  an  impression  on  the  young 
man.  After  a  brief  conversation,  he  promised  to  surrender  his 
heart  to  the  Saviour,  and  a  short  time  afterward  Mr.  Moody 
received  a  letter  from  him,  stating  that  he  had  found  what  he 
had  sought. 


86  HIS  CONVERSION 

After  his  reception  into  the  Mount  Vernon  Church,  Mr. 
Moody  remained  in  Boston  for  about  five  months.  The  restraint 
of  his  conservative  surroundings  lay  heavy  upon  him.  He  yearned 
for  freedom — freedom  to  think,  freedom  to  speak,  freedom  to 
work.  He  must  have  had  some  consciousness  of  the  trreat 
intuitions,  the  great  feeHngs,  which  were  struggHng  in  him  to 
burst  forth  into  bloom,  and  he  must  have  realized  that  the  soil  of 
staid  Boston  was  not  stimulating  to  such  a  growth.  He  had  come 
into  a  new  life ;  his  forceful  nature  was  not  the  kind  to  wait  for 
circumstances  to  develop  it.      He  required  broad  opportunity. 

He  Seeks  His  Future  in  the  West 

His  unrest  finally  decided  him  definitely  to  seek  a  future  in 
the  West,  His  mother,  it  is  said,  did  not  approve  of  the  move, 
dreading,  as  do  all  good  mothers,  the  change  which  would  take  her 
son  farther  from  her,  and  possibly  fearing  the  dangers  of  a  new 
environment  which  might  not  prove  wholesome.  Any  dread  which 
she  may  have  felt  was  afterward  proved  to  have  been  ill-founded. 

Securing  a  letter  from  his  uncle,  Mr.  Moody  set  out  for 
Chicago  in  September,  1856,  and  entered  the  Western  Metropolis 
with  small  store  of  earthly  goods,  but  with  a  large  fund  of  buoyant 
hope  and  energy,  and  a  devoted  purpose  to  serve  his  Divine 
Master. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Sunday  School  Work 

HEN  young  Moody  arrived  in  Chicago,  he  presented  a 
letter  which  his  uncle  had  given  him  to  Mr.  Wiswall,  a 
shoe  dealer  on  Lake  Street.  The  boy  was  not  altogether 
a  prepossessing  candidate  for  a  position.  He  was  boisterous  and 
uncouth,  and  it  was  with  many  misgivings  that  Mr.  Wiswall  took 
him  into  his  store.  His  employer's  decision,  however,  was  fully 
justified  by  the  young  man's  work.  It  was  not  long  before  young 
Moody  had  the  reputation  of  being  the  best  salesman  in  the  employ 
of  the  firm.  He  especially  delighted  to  take  in  hand  customers  j 
who  were  unusually  difficult  to  deal  with,  and,  while  he  never  over-  | 
stepped  the  line  between  honesty  and  deceit  in  his  business 
dealings,  when  it  came  to  a  contest  of  wits  he  was  almost  invariably 
victorious. 

Good  Preparation  for  Future  Work 

It  was  not  long  before  the  growth  of  Mr.  Wiswall's  business 
led  him  to  open  a  jobbing  department.  Mr.  Moody  was  promoted 
to  a  situation  in  the  new  department,  and  in  this  wider  opportunity 
for  the  exercise  of  his  business  faculties,  he  continued  to  win 
approval  as  a  valuable  assistant.  His  work  took  him  to  the  rail- 
road stations,  hotels  and  other  business  places  in  search  of 
customers,  and  doubtless  did  much  toward  widening  his  acquaint- 
ance, and  adding  to  his  experience  in  dealing  with  men.  The 
acquirement  of  practical  knov/ledge  of  the  best  way  to  approach  men, 
was  a  wonderful  preparation  for  the  great  work  of  his  later  years. 


88  SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK 

A  number  of  Mr.  Wiswall's  clerks  slept  in  rooms  in  the  store 
building,  an  arrangement  which  naturally  led  to  a  fraternal  inter- 
course. It  is  said  that  in  the  evenings  these  young  men  made  it  a 
habit  to  enter  into  debates  upon  the  live  questions  of  the  day — and 
sometimes  even  questions  which  were  not  living  issues.  Politics, 
theology,  business,  all  supplied  topics  to  these  young  orators,  and 
frequently  discussions  became  very  enthusiastic.  The  slavery 
question  was  often  mooted.  My  Moody  was,  as  might  be  expected 
from  his  vehement  nature,  an  earnest  participant  in  these  debates. 
Unembarrassed  by  the  limitations  placed  upon  him  by  lack  of 
education,  he  plunged  boldly  into  whatever  subject  was  under 
discussion,  and  generally  made  his  point.  In  theology  the  main 
subject  of  debate  was  the  old,  old  question,  foreordination 
versus  free  will.  Mr.  Moody  had  developed  strong  Calvinistic 
tendencies,  and  he  found  a  worthy  opponent  in  one  of  his  fellow 
clerks  who,  by  bringing  up,  was  a  Methodist.  The  question  of 
amusements  was  also  taken  up.  Mr.  Moody  was  strongly  averse 
to  any  frivolous  form  of  amusement,  or  any  amusement  which 
seemed  to  him  frivolous.  The  story  is  told  that  he  came  into  the 
store  one  night  from  some  religious  meeting,  and  found  two  of  the 
clerks  engaged  in  a  game  of  checkers.  He  dashed  the  checker 
board  to  the  ground  ;  then,  before  any  one  could  protest,  dropped 
upon  his  knees  and  began  to  pray.  It  must  not  be  thought,  how- 
ever, that  he  was  entirely  averse  to  healthful  sports.  On  the 
contrary,  rough  games  and  practical  jokes  were  a  keen  delight  to 

him. 

Recruiting  for  the  Church 

Shortly  after  his  arrival  in  Chicago,  Mr.  Moody  united  by 
letter  with  the  Plymouth  Congregational  Church,  of  which  Dr.  J. 
E.  Roy  was  at  that  time  pastor.  It  was  a  hospitable  church,  and 
Mr.   Moody  was  not  slow  to  find  an  opportunity  to  exercise  his 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL  WORK  9^ 

desire  to  do  practical  Christian  work.  He  rented  five  pews  and 
kept  them  filled  with  young  men  at  every  service.  He  also  went  \ 
out  and  hunted  up  boys  and  girls  for  the  Sunday  school.  The 
statement  has  been  made  that  he  asked  for  a  class  in  the  Sunday  \ 
school  but  was  refused.  This  is  doubtful,  for  Mr.  Moody  himself 
recognized  and  declared  at  that  time  that  he  could  not  teach.  He, 
however,  took  part  in  the  prayer  meetings,  and  in  his  work  as  a 
recruiting  officer  for  the  church  of  Christ,  began  to  ignore 
denominational  lines. 

Recruiting  for  Sunday  Schools 

It  seemed  as  if  no  church  could  give  him  enough  to  do ;  there- 
fore he  began  to  attend  a  Sunday  morning  class  in  the  First  Metho- 
dist Church,  and  to  work  with  its  Mission  Band,  which  was  composed 
of  a  number  of  devoted  young  men,  who  every  Sunday  morning 
used  to  visit  various  public  places  and  invite  strangers  to  attend 
church  services.  It  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Moody's  Christian  work 
was  purely  practical.  This  was  a  characteristic  determined  by  his 
temperament.  Theorizing  had  no  place  in  his  energetic  mind,  but 
his  whole  heart  was  bent  to  secure  the  best  results  from  the  means 
at  hand,  and  when  means  were  lacking,  to  find  them.  We  are 
struck  with  his  method  of  making  use  of  every  opportunity,  how- 
ever slight.  He  never  ignored  small  things  ;  he  felt  it  as  incumbent 
upon  him  to  help  the  clerk  who  worked  beside  him  in  the  store, 
and  the  stranger  whom  he  met  casually  upon  the  street,  as  to 
endeavor  to  sway  large  audiences  from  the  rostrum.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  it  is  doubtful  if,  in  these  humble  beginnings  of  his  efforts, 
he  had  any  realization  of  the  great  work  that  lay  in  store  for  him. 
He  simply  saw  men  and  children  sinking  in  the  moral  lazaretto  of 
a  great  city  and  stretched  out  his  hand  to  help  them. 

A  scientific  study  of  the  principles  of  education  has  impressed 
upon  our  minds  the  necessity  of  dealing  with  children,  if  we  desire 


92  SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK 

to  effect  any  permanent  chang-e  in  the  mental  or  moral  condition  of 
the  world ;  for  the  children  of  to-day  are  the  fathers  and  the 
mothers  of  the  next  generation.  Without  theorizing,  Mr.  Moody 
must  have  had  an  understanding  of  this  principle.  It  was  not  long- 
after  he  came  to  Chicago  that  he  began  to  work  among  the  chil- 
dren. His  success  in  recruiting  for  the  Sunday  schools  was  won- 
derful. On  one  occasion  he  found  a  little  mission  Sunday  school 
on  the  North  side,  and  offered  to  take  a  class.  The  superintendent 
pointed  out  that  they  already  had  almost  as  many  teachers  as  pupils, 
but  added  that,  if  Mr.  Moody  would  get  his  own  pupils,  he  would  be 
\at  liberty  to  conduct  a  class.  The  next  Sunday  Mr.  Moody  appeared 
with  eighteen  ragamuffins.  They  were  dirty,  unkempt,  many  of 
:them  barefoot,  but  as  the  young  teacher  said,  "  each  had  a  soul  to 

isave." 

His  Sunday  School  on  "The  Sands" 

Mr.  Moody's  missionary  explorations  led  him  into  the  most 
evil  parts  of  the  city.  His  face  became  familiar  in  the  worst  saloon 
districts,  among  the  sailors'  boarding  houses,  and  on  the  docks.  It 
was  on  one  of  these  excursions  that  he  fell  in  with  Mr.  J.  B.  Still- 
son,  a  business  man  who  was  employing  his  spare  time  in  the  same 
missionary  work.  The  two  men  cast  in  their  lot  together,  and, 
according  to  one  historian,  during  a  single  summer  helped  to  recruit 
twenty  mission  Sunday  schools. 

Mr,  Moody  recognized  that  the  average  mission  school  was 
not  calculated  to  reach  the  lowest  strata  of  society.  There  was  too 
large  a  requirement  of  order,  too  little  allowance  for  the  homes 
from  which  the  pupils  had  come.  Accordingly,  he  decided  to  begin 
a  mission  school  of  his  own.  On  the  north  side  of  the  Chicago 
River  was  a  district  called  "  The  Sands ",  sometimes  also  known 
as  "  Little  Hell  ".  To-day,  some  of  the  finest  residences  of  Chicago 
stand  there  where,  in  the  early  fifties  and  sixties,  crime  and  debauchery 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK  93 

reigned  supreme.  It  was  to  this  home  of  vice  Mr.  Moody  went 
to  begin  his  work.  He  found  a  deserted  shanty  which  had  form- 
erly been  a  saloon,  and  hiring  this  ramshackle  place,  started  out  to 
drum  up  children  to  fill  it.  At  first  he  found  it  hard  to  get  at  the 
young  street  Arabs  ;  then  he  filled  his  pockets  with  maple  sugar, 
and,  judiciously  distributing  it  among  those  who  promised  to  come, 
soon  had  his  little  room  overflowing  with  barbarians.  One  who  vis- 
ited the  school  in  those  days  has  described  his  experiences.  "  When 
I  came  to  the  little  old  shanty  and  entered  the  door,"  he  said,  "the 
first  thing  I  saw  by  the  light  of  the  few  candles,  was  a  man  stand- 
ing up,  holding  in  his  arms  a  negro  boy,  to  whom  he  was  trying  to 
read  the  story  of  the  Prodigal  Son.  A  great  many  words  the  reader 
could  not  make  out  and  was  obliged  to  skip.  My  thought  was.  If 
the  Lord  can  ever  use  such  an  instrument  as  that  for  His  honor 
and  glory  it  will  astonish  me  !  When  the  meeting  was  over,  Mr 
Moody  said  to  me,  '  I  have  got  only  one  talent.  I  have  no  educa- 
tion, but  I  love  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  I  want  to  do  something 
for  Him.'  I  have  watched  him  since,  and  have  come  to  know  him 
thoroughly,  and  for  consistent  walk  and  conversation  I  have  never 
met  a  man  equal  to  him." 

Muscular    Christianity 

There  was  probably  never  another  school  just  like  this  school 
on  "  The  Sands  "  to  which  young  Moody  devoted  his  spare  time. 
Speaking  from  the  steps  of  the  hall  entrance,  the  evangelist  could 
make  his  voice  heard  in  the  doors  of  two  hundred  saloons.  At 
first  he  had  no  seats  for  his  school,  and  for  some  time  none  of  the 
other  usual  requisites  ;  no  blackboard,  no  library,  no  maps ;  but  it 
was  a  live  school— in  fact,  it  was  about  as  much  as  the  teachers 
could  do  to  keep  the  turbulent  membership  suf^ciently  quiet  to  sing 
a  little  and  hear  a  little  talking.  Mr.  Moody  was  helped  here  by  his 
friend  Mr.  Stillson.     As  a  cardinal  doctrine  they  held  that  the  worse 


94  SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK 

a  boy  was  the  more  necessity  there  was  to  keep  him  in  the  school. 
There  is  a  story  of  one  young  rough  who  defied  for  a  long  time  all 
efforts  to  tame  him,  and  whose  riotous  behavior  endangered  the 
existence  of  the  school.  Having  meditated  and  prayed  over  the 
matter  all  the  week,  Mr.  Moody  came  to  the  school  on  Sunday  per- 
suaded that  there  was  but  one  remedy  that  would  reach  this  case,  and 
that  was  a  good  thrashing.  Coming  up  behind  the  young  rowdy,  he 
seized  him  and  pushed  him  through  the  open  door  of  a  little  ante- 
room, then,  locking  the  door,  proceeded  to  business.  The  excitement 
in  the  schoolroom  was  drawn  off  by  singing  until  t4ie  two  reappeared 
after  a  somewhat  prolonged  and  noisy  recess  in  the  anteroom.  Both 
were  evidently  well  warmed  up,  but  the  humble  bearing  of  the  of- 
fending boy  made  manifest  the  result  of  the  battle.  *'  It  was  hard 
work,"  remarked  Mr.  Moody,  "but  I  guess  we  have  saved  him." 
This  proved  to  be  true  ;  and,  moreover,  this  exhibition  of  muscular 
Christianity  served  as  a  strong  claim  on  the  admiration  of  the  school ; 
Mr.  Moody  had  demonstrated  his  ability  to  keep  order,  and  there- 
after found  many  helpers.  One  day  an  old  pupil,  coming  up  the 
aisle,  noticed  a  new  recruit  with  his  cap  on.  He  snatched  it  off,  and 
with  one  blow  sent  the  offender  to  the  floor.  "  I'll  teach  you  to 
keep  your  cap  on  in  this  school,"  v/as  the  explanation  of  the  young 
protector  as  he  passed  to  his  own  seat  with  the  air  of  one  ready  to 

do  his  duty. 

The  North  Market  Mission 

After  a  while  the  little  shanty  became  too  small  for  Mr. 
Moody's  purpose,  and,  with  the  permission  of  Mayor  Haines,  the 
school  was  removed  to  a  large  hall  over  the  North  Market.  This 
hall  was  generally  used  on  Saturday  evenings  for  dancing,  and  it 
often  took  the  whole  Sunday  morning  for  Mr.  Moody  to  clean  it 
up  so  that  it  would  be  in  condition  for  his  use  in  the  afternoon. 
There  were  no  chairs,  so  Mr.  Moody  set  out  to  secure  money  to 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK  95 

buy  them.  He  went  to  several  rich  men,  among  others  to  Mr. 
J.  V.  Farwell,  a  prominent  merchant.  After  receiving  a  contribu- 
tion, he  asked  Mr.  Farwell  what  he  was  doing  in  a  personal  way 
for  the  unsaved,  and  invited  him  to  attend  the  mission.  The  next 
Sunday  Mr.  Farwell  appeared  at  the  North  Market  School.  The 
scene,  to  his  imagination,  defied  all  description.  Ragamuffins 
were  darting  hither  and  thither,  crying  their  street  cries,  and  enter- 
ing upon  all  sorts  of  mischief,  but  from  this  state  of  confusion 
Scripture  readings,  songs,  and  speeches  occasionally  rescued  them. 
Mr.  Farwell  made  a  speech,  and  at  the  close,  to  his  great  con- 
sternation, was  nominated  by  Mr.  Moody  superintendent  of  the 
school.  The  election  was  carried  by  acclamation  before  he  had 
time  to  object.  This  office,  so  suddenly  pressed  upon  him,  was 
filled  by  Mr.  Farwell  for  more  than  six  years. 

A  Plan  That  Worked  to  a  Charm 

It  was  not  easy  to  find  suitable  teachers  for  the  classes  which 
made  up  such  a  school,  and  it  was  not  always  easy  to  get  rid  of  un- 
suitable teachers,  but  a  plan  was  hit  upon  that  worked  to  a  charm. 
As  no  teacher  could  do  such  pupils  good  unless  he  could  interest 
them,  a  rule  was  made,  giving  the  pupil  the  privilege,  under  certain 
limitations,  of  leaving  his  class  when  he  chose  and  going  into 
another  one.  The  result  was  that  the  superintendent  was  relieved 
from  the  unpleasant  task  of  taking  a  dull  teacher's  class  away  from, 
him,  for  the  class,  one  by  one,  quickly  took  itself  away. 

Mr.  Moody  put  a  vast  amount  of  work  into  the  school.  His 
evenings  and  Sundays  were  spent  in  skirmishing  about  "  The 
Sands  ",  looking  after  old  pupils  or  hunting  up  new  ones.  Along 
with  the  Gospel  he  gave  a  great  deal  of  relief  for  the  sick,  the  un- 
employed, and  the  unfortunate.  He  was  the  almoner  not  only  oi 
his    own   charity,   but   also  of  the   gifts  of  the  many   friends  who 


96  SUNDAY  SCHOOL  WORK 

became  Interested  In  his  work.  His  old  employer  has  stated  that  as 
many  as  twenty  children  used  to  come  Into  the  store  at  one  time  to 
be  gratuitously  fitted  with  new  shoes. 

As  the  school  became  popular,  Interest  and  curiosity  brought 
many  visitors,  and  It  became  easier  to  find  teachers  for  the  seventy 
or  eighty  classes.  The  attendance  at  the  school  Increased  In  the 
most  astonishing  fashion.  In  three  months  there  were  200  pupils  ; 
in  six  months  350,  and  within  a  year  the  average  attendance  was 
about  650,  with  an  occasional  crowd  of  nearly  1,000.  The  city 
missionary  made  objection  to  the  wide  range  from  which  Mr. 
Moody  was  now  drawing  his  recruits,  on  the  plea  that  he  was  In- 
frlnorincr  on  the  work  of  other  missions,  but  the  work  of  the  North 
Market  School  continued.  No  uniform  lesson  leaf  was  used  in  the 
school,  but  each  teacher  and  pupil  was  supplied  with  a  copy  of  the 
New  Testament,  and  from  this  drew  information  and  Inspiration. 

President  Lincoln's  Visit 

A  notable  event  in  the  history  of  the  school  was  the  visit  of 
President-elect  Lincoln,  who  came  one  Sunday  at  the  request  of 
Mr.  Farwell.  When  the  carriage  went  to  the  house  where  Mr. 
Lincoln  was  visiting,  he  left  an  unfinished  dinner  in  order  to  keep 
his  appointment,  and  was  hurried  northward  to  the  unsavory 
district  in  which  the  North  Market  was  situated.  The  President- 
elect was  perhaps  not  accustomed  to  talk  to  Sunday  schools ;  at 
any  rate  he  requested  that  he  should  not  be  asked  to  make  a 
speech  ;  but  when  he  was  Introduced  to  the  spirited  aggregation  in 
the  North  Market  Hall,  the  enthusiasm  was  so  great  that  he 
yielded  and  spoke.  His  words  were  for  right  thinking  and  right 
acting.  When  a  few  months  later  this  man  issued  a  call  for 
75,000  volunteers,  about  sixty  of  the  boys  who  had  heard  him 
that    day  In  the    North    Market    Hall    answered.     To    them    the 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK  97 

words  of  the  man  who  had   told  them   of  duty  still   rang  through 
the  words  of  the  head  of  the  State. 

Conversions  and  transformations  were  continually  occurring 
as  a  result  of  the  work  of  Mr.  Moody's  school.  More  are  related 
than  can  possibly  be  mentioned  here. 

Many  Times  in  Danger  of  His  Life 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  in  his  peregrinations  among  the 
lowly  and  the  wretched,  Mr.  Moody  always  met  with  a  welcome 
reception.  There  were  many  times  when  he  stood  in  danger  of  his 
life.  On  such  occasions  he  made  it  a  principle  to  run  away  just  as 
fast  as  he  could,  and  he  generally  escaped  because  he  could  run 
faster  than  those  who  pursued  him.  One  Sunday  morning  he  was 
visiting  some  Roman  Catholic  family,  with  the  purpose  of  bringing 
the  children  to  the  school,  when  a  powerful  man  sprang  at  him 
with  a  club.  The  man  had  sworn  to  kill  him,  but  a  hard  run  saved 
the  life  of  the  young  evangelist.  Even  after  this  attack  he  did 
not  desist  in  his  visit  to  this  house,  but  continued  again  and  again, 
until  his  tact  and  patience  disarmed  his  adversary. 

On  another  occasion,  one  Saturday  evening  he  found  in  a  house 
a  jug  of  whiskey,  which  had  been  stored  there  for  a  carouse  the 
following  day.  After  a  rousing  temperance  lecture,  Mr.  Moody 
persuaded  the  women  of  the  house  to  permit  him  to  pour  the 
whiskey  into  the  street.  This  he  did  before  departing.  Early  the 
next  morning  he  came  back  to  fetch  the  children  of  the  place  to 
Sunday  school.  The  men  were  lying  in  wait  for  him  to  thrash  him. 
It  was  impossible  to  get  away,  for  he  was  surrounded  on  all  sides, 
but  before  they  could  touch  him,  Mr.  Moody  said,  "  See  here,  men, 
if  you  are  going  to  whip  me,  you  might  at  least  give  me  time  to 
say  my  prayers."  The  request  was  unusual ;  perhaps  it  was  for 
that  very  reason  that  it  was  acceeded   to.      Mr.   Moody  dropped 


98  SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK 

upon  his  knees  and  prayed  such  a  prayer  as  those  rough  men  had 
never  heard  before.  Gradually  they  became  interested  and  then 
softened,  and  when  he  had  finished  they  gave  him  their  hands,  and 
a  few  minutes  later  Mr.  Moody  left  the  house  for  his  school,  fol- 
lowed by  the  children  he  had  come  to  find. 

He  Knew  His  Work  Thoroughly 

Mr.  Moody  was  not  only  busily  engaged  in  Chicago,  but  early 
in  his  missionary  life  he  was  called  to  speak  in  small  Sunday  school 
conventions  chiefly  because  he  had  already  gained  the  reputation  of 
reaching  the  masses  of  poor  children  in  the  cities.  He  knew  this 
work  thoroughly,  and  in  his  own  way  he  could  tell  about  it,  not 
only  to  the  instruction  but  often  to  the  amusement  as  well  of  his 
audience.  At  one  time  he  was  invited  to  a  place  in  Illinois  and 
was  accompanied  by  a  Christian  Association  secretary  ;  they  two 
were  advertised  to  speak.  The  secretary,  in  speaking  of  it  after- 
wards said,  "  If  ever  two  poor  fellows  were  frightened,  it  was 
Moody  and  I."  They  reached  their  destination  about  two  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  too  early  to  sit  up  and  too  late  to  go  to  bed,  but 
they  determined  that  they  would  spend  all  the  time  that  was  given 
them  in  prayer.  During  the  rest  of  the  night  they  sought  God  for 
power  and  guidance.  Before  the  hour  came  when  they  were  to 
speak,  Mr.  Moody  secured  the  use  of  a  public-school  room  which 
was  quite  near  the  place  of  the  larger  meeting.  When  asked  what 
he  wanted  to  do  with  it,  he  said,  "  I  want  it  for  an  inquiry  meeting." 
Both  these  young  men  were  to  speak,  and  each  agreed  that  while 
the  other  spoke  he  would  pray  for  him.  When  Mr.  Moody  was 
announced  he  seemed  like  one  inspired.  He  pictured  to  them 
their  need  of  Christ  to  help  them  as  Sunday  school  teachers  ;  told 
them  it  was  an  awful  sin  to  do  their  work  in  a  careless  manner,  and 
after  an  address  of  an  hour  called  upon  all  who  wanted  to  meet 


SUNDAY  SCHOOL   WORK  og 

him,  and  to  know  Christ,  to  come  with  him  to  the  school-room  next 
door,  where  great  numbers  were  helped.  This  was  the  beginning 
of  a  widespread  spirit  of  revival,  but  it  was  also  the  beginning  of  a  new 
life  for  Mr.  Moody.  From  1858  to  1865,  Mr.  Moody,  Mr.  Jacobs  and 
Major  Whittle,  who  were  closely  identified  in  conventions  held  in 
different  parts  of  the  country,  became  deeply  impressed  with  the 
,  need  of  more  of  the  presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  annual 
convention  was  to  meet  in  Springfield,  and  these  three  workers 
were  deeply^oncerned  that  it  should  be  the  best  convention  in  the 
history  of  the  State.  They  reached  Springfield  before  the  associa- 
tion convened,  and  held  revival  meetings  as  a  prelude  to  what  was  to 
follow  afterward.  Seventy  persons  were  converted.  This  became 
the  Revival  Conference.  The  next  year  the  Sunday  school  \ 
workers  met  in  the  city  of  Decatur,  and  a  record  was  brought  up/ 
of  ten  thousand  persons  brought  to  Christ  in  a  year.  From  this\ 
time  on  Mr.  Moody  was  constantly  invited  to  other  States,  and  ■ 
from  Maine  to  Texas,  from  Montreal  to  San  Francisco,  from  St. 
Paul  to  New  Orleans,  he  went  year  after  year,  preaching  and 
praying,  rousing  the  Christian  Associations  into  activity,  inspiring 
the  pastors  to  labor  for  revivals,  helping  the  Sunday  school 
teachers  to  reach  their  scholars  for  Christ ;  and  in  all  his  work  as 
an  evangelist  throughout  the  world,  deeper  impressions  were  never 
made  than  in  the  first  days  of  his  active  work  as  a  Sunday  school 
teacher  and  leader. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  and  the 
Chicago  Avenue  Church 

R.  MOODY  had  not  been  long  identified  with  active  Chris- 
tian work  in  Chicago,  before  he  saw  an  opportunity  for 
service  in  connection  with  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation. This  organization  had  been  estabHshed  in  Chicago  as  a 
result  of  the  great  revival  of  1857-8,  but  after  a  few  years  the  inter- 
est in  the  daily  noon  prayer  meeting  began  to  wane.  To  increase 
this  interest  impressed  Mr.  Moody  as  his  duty.  His  abilities  were 
soon  recognized  by  those  in  charge  of  the  work,  and  he  was 
appointed  chairman  of  the  Visiting  Committee  to  the  sick  and 
to  strangers.  His  work  in  behalf  of  the  noon  meetings  was 
blessed  moreover  with  large  results. 

Result  of  His  First  Year's  Work 

He  had  found  the  Association  made  up  of  conservative  men 

of  middle  or  advanced  years,  but  his  advent  among  them  was,  as 

an    officer    of   the    Association  has    said,   "  like    a    stiff   northwest 

breeze,"    and  under  his  influence  the  institution   became   free  and 

popular,  and  its  influence  was  extensively  widened.      His  abilities 

were    especially  eminent   in   raising  money,  but  of  the  thousands 

of  dollars  he  secured  he  would  take  nothing  for  himself.     Among 

other  schemes  devised  by  him  was  one  which  federated  the  mission 

schools  of  the  city  under  the  Association,  and  brought  them  under 

the  care  of  the  stronger  churches.      The  report  of  the  first  year  of 
100 


THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION  loi 

the  work  of  his  committee  on  visitation  gives  the  number  of 
famiHes  visited  as  554,  and  the  amount  of  money  used  for  charitable 
purposes  as  $2,350. 

Meanwhile,  the  growing  strength  of  the  North  Market  Mission 
taxed  the  ingenuity  of  the  young  superintendent  to  provide  room 
for  its  expansion.  He  set  himself  to  work  to  sectire  a  suitable  edi- 
fice, and,  collecting  personally  about  $20,000,  saw  a  neat  chapel  rise 
in  Illinois  Street,  not  far  from  the  old  North  Market  Hall.  This 
was  in  1863.  Mr.  Moody  had  ever  aimed,  as  the  converts  of  the 
Mission  grew  in  number,  to  recommend  them  to  regular  church 
homes,  but  an  increasing  unwillingness  on  the  part  of  the  converts 
to  leave  the  influences  of  his  personal  presence  seemed  to  necessitate 
the  orcranization  of  a  regular  church  to  be  made  up  of  the  converts 

of  the  Mission. 

The  Illinois  Street  Church 

"The  Illinois  Street  Church  "  was  therefore  organized  under 
Congregational  auspices.  Members  were  baptized  and  received 
into  the  church  by  regular  pastors  of  other  Congregational 
churches,  but  the  communion  service  was  conducted  by  Mr. 
Moody  without  reference  to  established  forms.  He  was  the 
pastor  of  the  church,  although  he  never  received  ordination.  For 
this  reason,  probably,  the  church,  although  organized  by  Congrega- 
tionalists,  was  not  reckoned  a  Congregational  Church.  Its  disci-  '\ 
plinc  and  confession  of  faith  were  made  up  with  the  end  that  no 
true  lover  of  the  Lord  should  be  kept  from  the  fellowship  of  this 
Christian  band  by  any  non-essential  of  doctrine  or  observance.  1 

The  membership  of  this  church  in  the  beginning  was  unique. 
Almost  every  communicant  had  been  rescued  from  degradation  by 
the  work  of  the  Mission.  And  it  was  a  working  congregation. 
Labor  was  so  divided  that  every  member  had  something  to  do,  and 
every    night   saw   some    service    in    the   chapel.       The    meetings 


102  THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION 

seemed  to  be  a  continuous  revival.  Boundless  energy  and  great 
physical  strength,  with  the  constant  dwelling  of  God's  spirit 
in  him,  alone  enabled  Mr.  Moody  to  bear  up  under  the  great 
strain.  At  times  he  would  find  himself  completely  exhausted  and 
almost  ready  to  give  up,  but  a  few  hours  of  rest  or  a  slight  change 
of  occupation  generally  sufficed  to  put  him  very  quickly  on  his  feet 
again. 

Two  Hundred  Calls  in  a  Day 

The  story  is  tcld  of  how  he  made  two  hundred  calls  on  New 
Year's  Day.  "  At  an  early  hour  the  omnibus  which  was  to  take 
him  and  several  of  his  leading  men  was  at  the  door,  and,  with  a 
'''  carefully  prepared  list  of  residences,  they  began  the  day's  labor. 
The  list  included  a  large  proportion  of  families  living  in  garrets 
and  the  upper  stories  of  high  tenements.  On  reaching  the  home 
of  a  family  belonging  to  his  congregation  he  would  spring  out  of 
the  'bus,  leap  up  the  stairways,  rush  into  the  room,  and  pay  his 
respects  as  follows  : 

*' '  I  am  Moody ;  this  is  Deacon  De  Golyer  ;  this  is  Deacon 
Thane;  this  is  Brother  Hitchcock.  Are  you  well?  Do  you  all 
come  to  church  and  Sunday-school  ?  Have  you  all  the  coal  you 
need  for  the  winter  ?  Let  us  pray  ?  '  And  down  we  would  all  go 
lipon  our  knees,  while  Mr.  Moody  offered  from  fifteen  to  twenty 
words  of  earnest,  tender,  sympathetic  supplication. 

"  Then  springing  to  his  feet,  he  would  dash  on  his  hat,  dart 
through  the  doorway  and  down  the  stairs,  throwing  a  hearty  '  good- 
bye '  behind  him,  leap  into  the  '  bus,  and  off  to  the  next  place  on  his 
list ;  the  entire  exercise  occupying  about  one  minute  and  a  half. 

"  Before  long  the  horses  were  tired  out,  for  Mr.  Moody  insisted 
on  their  going  on  a  run  from  one  house  to  another  ;  so  the  omnibus 
was  abandoned,  and  the  party  proceeded  on  foot.  One  after  another 


THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION  103 

of  his  companions  became  exhausted  with  running  upstairs  and  down- 
stairs, and  across  the  streets,  and  kneeling  on  bare  floors,  and  get- 
ting up  in  a  hurry  ;  until,  reluctantly,  but  of  necessity,  they  were 
obliged  to  relinquish  the  attempt,  and  the  tireless  pastor  was  left  to 
make  the  last  of  the  two  hundred  calls  alone.  He  returned  home 
in  the  highest  spirits  to  laugh  at  his  exhausted  companions  for  desert- 
inof  him." 

The  next  year  Mr.  Moody  went  on  foot  through  another  such 
day — reminding  his  friends  that  on  the  previous  New  Year  they 
had  often  felt  obliored  to  leave  the  '  bus  before  reachine  a  house, 
lest  the  sight  of  the  vehicle  should  hurt  the  poor  they  visited, 
as  an  apparent  waste  of  money. 

Elected  President  of  the  Y.   M.  C.  A. 

The  increase  of  the  work  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation during  the  Civil  War  called  for  increased  accommodations. 
Mr.  Moody's  success  with  his  Mission,  and  his  well-known  energy 
and  boldness,  led  to  the  proposal  that  he  be  elected  president  of 
the  Association.  His  lack  of  learnino^  and  his  bluntness  caused 
considerable  opposition  to  his  election,  but  he  received  a  small 
majority.  A  building  committee  was  immediately  organized.  Mr. 
Moody's  plan  was  to  organize  a  stock  company,  with  twelve  trus- 
tees, who  should  erect  and  hold  the  building  in  trust.  The  stock 
was  to  bear  six.  per  cent,  interest,  from  the  completion  of  the  build- 
ing, and  the  interest  on  the  stock  was  to  be  paid  out  of  the  rentals 
of  such  portions  of  the  building  as  were  not  needed  for  the  use  of 
the  Association,  and  also  from  the  rent  of  the  great  Hall.  The 
excess  of  the  rentals  over  the  interest  was  to  be  used  to  buy  up  the 
stock,  at  par,  in  behalf  of  the  Association.  Mr.  Moody  succeeded 
jn  placing  the  stock  to  the  value  of  $101,000. 


I04  THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION 

The  new  building  was  erected  in  Madison  Street,  between 
Clark  and  La  Salle  Streets.  The  large  hall  had  a  seating  capacity 
of  three  thousand.  There  were  in  the  buildinof  a  larofe  room  for 
the  noon  prayer  meetings,  a  library,  offices,  etc.  The  hall  was 
dedicated  September  29,  1867.  The  report  of  the  treasurer,  Mr. 
John  V.  Farwell,  on  that  occasion,  showed  that  the  entire  cost  of 
land,  building,  etc.,  was  $199,000.  Stock  had  been  subscribed  to 
the  amount  of  $135,000;  $50,000  had  been  loaned  on  mortgages. 
The  remaining  indebtedness  was  at  once  cleared  up  by  sub- 
scriptions. 

Dedication  of  the  New  Building 

Among  the  speakers  at  the  dedicatory  service  was  Mr.  George 
H.  Stuart,  president  of  the  United  States  Christian  Commission. 
His  address  sketched  the  history  of  the  Association,  and  described 
the  possibilities  that  were  open  to  its  efforts.  The  effect  of  his 
speech  was  marvelous.  It  seemed  as  if  the  words  of  this  great 
Christian  man  had  loosened  the  heart-strings  of  every  individual 
in  the  large  audience.  The  hall  was  still  unnamed,  but  on  Mr. 
Moody's  nomination  it  was  christened  "  Farwell  Hall,"  in  honor  of 
Mr.  John  V.  Farwell. 

Under  the  management  of  Mr.  Moody,  Farwell  Hall  became 
very  popular.  The  daily  noon  prayer  meeting  was  so  well  attended 
that  occasionally  the  one  thousand  seats  in  the  prayer  room  were 
not  sufficient  to  hold  the  people,  and  it  was  necessary  to  adjourn 
to  the  large  hall.  Monday  evening  a  special  meeting  was  held  for 
strangers.  Every  noon  Mr.  Moody  would  go  to  the  street  in  front 
of  the  hall  a  few  minutes  before  the  meetinq-  and  endeavor  to 
send  within  as  many  of  the  passers-by  as  he  could  approach.  Then, 
as  the  clock  struck  twelve,  he  would  hurry  up  the  stairs  and  take 
his  usual  seat,  near  the  leader,  where,   if  the  meeting  seemed  to 


THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION  105 

drag  or  to  require  a  stimulus,  he  would  take  it  in  hand  and  do 
everything  necessary  to  animate  it. 

Mr.  Moody  began  to  be  known  in  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association  work  throughout  the  United  States  and  Canada,  and 
his  services  were  in  frequent  demand  for  conventions  and  revival 
services. 

Four  months  after  its  dedication,  Farwell  Hall  was  burned,  in 
January,  1868.  Mr.  Moody  did  not  lag  when  this  catastrophe 
overtook  the  enterprise  in  which  he  was  bound  up.  Subscriptions 
were  opened  immediately,  and  most  of  the  original  stockholders 
came  to  the  front  with  renewed  support.  On  the  old  foundations 
a  new  Farwell  Hall  was  erected.  It  was  dedicated  in  1869,  to  an 
only  too  brief  period  of  noble  service  for  the  Master. 

A  Great    Religious  Centre 

Mr.  Moody  continued  president  of  the  Association  for  four 
years.  He  then  declined  re-election,  but  consented  to  act  as  vice- 
president,  with  Mr.  J.  V.  Farwell  in  the  chair.  The  Sunday 
evening  meetings  in  the  new  hall  were  wonderful.  Mr.  Moody 
would  there  preach  the  same  discourse  he  had  delivered  to  his 
congregation  in  Illinois  Street  in  the  morning.  Such  throngs 
attended  these  evening  meetings  that  they  came  to  compose,  with 
one  exception,  the  largest  protestant  congregation  in  Chicago. 
The  sermon  was  followed  by  an  inquiry  meeting. 

Farwell  Hall  soon  became  a  great  religious  centre.  That  Its 
success  as  an  Institution  was  due  in  large  degree  to  Mr.  Moody 
cannot  be  doubted.  His  energy  made  possible  the  erection  of  the 
first  structure  ;  his  perseverance  called  forth  the  second,  phcenix- 
llke,  from  the  ashes  of  the  first ;  his  devotion  filled  the  prayer 
meetings  ;  his  faith  led  hundreds  to  a  changed  life  ;  and  his  direct- 
ness, hJ5  singleness  of  purpose,  prevented  any  deviation  of  the 


io6  THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION 

work  from  the  paths  of  Christian  helpfulness.     The  second  Far- 
well  Hall  went  down  in  the  great  fire  of  1871,  but  its  work  still  lived. 
Mr.  Moody  used  to  give   an    incident  of  his    last  service    in 
Farwell  Hall  on  the  night  of  the  great  fire.      He  said  : 

Incident  of  His  Last  Service  in  Farwell  Hall 
*'  The  last  time  I  preached  upon  this  question  was  in  Farwell 
Hall.  I  had  been  for  five  nights  preaching  on  the  life  of  Christ. 
I  took  Him  from  the  cradle  and  followed  Him  up  to  the  judgment 
hall,  and  on  that  occasion  I  i:onsider  I  made  as  great  a  blunder  as 
ever  I  made  in  my  life.  If  I  could  recall  my  act  I  would  give  this 
right  hand.  It  was  upon  that  memorable  night  in  October,  and 
the  Court  House  bell  was  sounding  an  alarm  of  fire,  but  I  paid  no 
attention  to  it.  You  know  we  were  accustomed  to  hear  the  fire- 
bell  often,  and  it  didn't  disturb  us  much  when  it  sounded.  I 
finished  the  sermon  upon  'What  shall  I  do  with  Jesus?'  And  I 
said  to  the  audience,  '  Now  I  want  you  to  take  the  question  with 
you  and  think  over  it,  and  next  Sunday  I  want  you  to  come  back 
and  tell  me  what  you  are  going  to  do  with  it.'  What  a  mistake  ! 
/  It  seems  now  as  if  Satan  was  in  my  mind  when  I  said  this.  Since 
then  I  have  never  dared  to  give  an  audience  a  week  to  think  on 
their  salvation.  If  they  were  lost,  they  might  rise  up  in  judgment 
against  me,  '  Now  is  the  accepted  time.'  We  went  down  stairs  to 
the  other  meeting,  and  I  remember  when  Mr.  Sankey  was  singings 
and  how  his  voice  rang  when  lie  came  to  that  pleading  verse ; 

*' 'To-day  the  Saviour  calls; 
For  refuge  fly. 
The  storm  of  justice  falls, 
And  death  is  nigh.' 

After  the  meeting  we  went  home.  I  remember  going  down  La 
Salle  street  with  a  young  man  who  is  probably  in  the  hall  to-night, 
and  saw  the  glare  of  flames.     I   said  to  the  young   man,  '  This 


THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION  107 

means  ruin  to  Chicago.'  About  one  o'clock  Farwell  Hall  went ; 
soon  the  church  in  which  I  had  preached  went  down,  and  every- 
thing was  scattered.  I  never  saw  that  audience  again.  My  friends, 
we  don't  know  what  may  happen  to-morrow,  but  there  is  one  thing  I 
do  know,  and  that  is,  if  you  take  the  gift,  you  are  saved.  If  you  have 
eternal  life,  you  need  not  fear  fire,  death,  or  sickness.  Let  disease 
or  death  come,  you  can  shout  triumphantly  over  the  grave,  if  you 
have  Christ.  My  friends,  what  are  you  going  to  do  with  Him  to- 
night ?     Will  you  decide  now  ?" 

The  North  Side  Tabernacle 

The  Illinois  Street  Church  was  also  burned  in  the  great  fire, 
and  Mr.  Moody  at  once  began  the  work  of  feeding  and  sheltering 
the  homeless.  Complaints  were  made  of  his  too  bountiful  distribu- 
tion, for  he  would  refuse  no  one  who  asked.  He  therefore  with- 
drew from  the  relief  work,  and  went  East,  to  hold  revival  meetings 
and  to  raise  money  toward  rebuilding  his  church.  With  the  large 
assistance  of  Mr.  George  H.  Stuart  and  Mr.  John  Wanamaker,  of 
Philadelphia,  he  obtained  three  thousand  dollars  for  the  erection 
of  a  rough  struture  in  the  burned  district,  not  far  from  the  ruins  of 
the  old  church.  This  "North  Side  Tabernacle,"  as  it  was  called, 
covered  a  plot  of  ground  one  hundred  and  nine  feet  long  and 
seventy-five  feet  wide.  All  around  it  were  the  ruins.  There  was 
some  doubt  whether  the  situation  of  the  Tabernacle  would  permit  a 
large  attendance,  but  on  the  day  of  dedication  more  than  one 
thousand  children  came  together. 

The  meetings  in  the  Tabernacle  were  distinguished  by  a 
remarkable  revival.  During  the  year  following  the  fire  eight 
services  were  held  every  Sunday.  A  wide  relief  work  was  also 
instituted  by  the  indefatigable  pastor.  Mr.  Moody  had  returned 
from  the  eastern  tour  refreshed  spiritually,  and  blessed  by  a  large 


io8  THE  YOUNG  MEN'S  CHRISTIAN  ASSOCIATION 

\  access  of  power.      He  has  told  us  how,  while  he  was  in   New  York 

I  City  on  that  memorable  journey,  God  revealed  Himself  especially 

)  to  his  servant.     This  baptism  of  the  Divine  Love  vivified  his  later 

work  and  made  it  tell  with  the  unconverted  as  never  before.     And 

so,  in  the   Tabernacle  among  the   ashes,  sprang  up   a  wonderful 

manifestation  of  God's  presence,  and  hundreds  were  led  to  Christ. 

Development  of  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church 

The  new  church,  which  afterward  came  to  be  known  as  "  The 
Chicago  Avenue  Church",  was  partly  erected  in  1873.  From  that 
time  it  was  used  by  the  congregation,  a  temporary  roof  being  built 
over  the  first  floor,  but  not  until  1876  was  it  completed,  freed  of 
debt,  and  dedicated.      Up  to  this  time  the  preaching  and  pastoral 

1  work  was  done  chiefly  by  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Watts  De  Golyer. 

j  Since  then  the  Rev.  W.  J.  Erdman,  the  Rev.  Charles  H.  Norton, 
the  Rev.  G.  C.  Needham,   President  Blanchard,  the  Rev.  Charles 

I  F.  Goss  and   the   Rev.  F.  B.  Hyde   have  occupied  the  pulpit  and 

1  acted  as  pastors.  The  present  pastor  is  the  Rev.  Dr.  R.  A.  Torrey. 
The  church  has  always  maintained  its  early  character  as  an 
undenominational,  evangelical  and  aggressive  congregation.  The 
sittings  and  other  privileges  are  all  free,  and  the  motto  selected  at 
the  organization  of  the  church,  and  still  inscribed  over  the  main 
entrance,  is  "Welcome  to  this  House  of  God  are  strangers  and  the 
poor."  It  has  always  been  dependent  upon  the  offerings  of  the 
people  for  its  support,  and  the  expenses  are  met  through  the 
systematic  weekly  giving  of  the  congregation. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

Giving  Up  Business 

IT  is  not  hard  to  appreciate  the  straits  to  which  Mr.  Moody  was 
subjected  by  the  conflicting  claims  of  his  business  and  his  mis- 
sion work.  Only  a  man  of  boundless  energy  and  fine  physique 
could  have  accomplished  what  he  was  accomplishing,  His  business 
received  its  full  share  of  his  attention  as  formerly,  but  in  his  every 
spare  moment  his  mind,  was  occupied  by  plans  for  the  work  at 
North  Market  Hall,  while  every  evening  and  every  Sunday  he 
gave  himself  up  wholly  to  his  labors  for  the  Master. 

Moody  as  a  Ccmmercial  Traveler 

Meanwhile  he  had  not  remained  with  Mr.  Wiswall.  After  two 
years  with  his  first  friend,  he  entered  the  establishment  of  Mr.  C.  N. 
Henderson,  v/ho  had  become  acquainted  with  him  at  the  Mission, 
and  had  taken  interest  in  the  young  man  and  his  work.  This  new 
connection  forced  upon  him  the  work  of  a  commercial  traveler. 
His  evenings  could  no  longer  be  given  to  mission  work  at  home, 
for  the  greater  part  of  his  time  was  spent  out  of  the  city.  How- 
ever, no  matter  how  far  his  travels  might  have  taken  him  during 
the  week,  he  never  failed  to  return  on  Saturday  night,  that  he 
might  be  at  North  Market  Hall  on  Sunday.  It  will  be  readily 
understood  that  inasmuch  as  his  business  arrangements  provided 
for  his  return  to  the  city  only  one  Sunday  out  of  four,  the  expenses 
of  his  weekly  trips  would  have  been  a  serious  drain  upon  his 
slender  financial  resources.     But  the  superintendent  of  the  Chicago, 

109 


110  GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 

Burlington  and  Quincy  Railroad,  a  man  of  generous  impulses,  who 
felt  deeply  interested  in  the  North  Side  Sunday  school,  finding  that 
Mr.  Moody's  presence  was  essential  to  the  Sunday  work,  provided 
him  with  a  free  pass  over  the  railroad  lines  under  his  control,  to 
bring  him  home  three  Sundays  out  of  the  four. 

Mr.  Moody  had  not  held  his  position  very  long  before  Mr. 
Henderson  died.  In  the  changes  which  the  removal  of  this  good 
man  entailed  in  the  house,  Mr,  Moody  severed  his  connection  with 
the  firm  and  removed  to  the  establishment  of  Messrs.  Buel,  Hill, 
&  Granger,  with  whom  he  remained  for  about  one  year.  More  and 
more  was  his  heart  wrapped  up  in  his  practical  Christian  work  ; 
business  meant  less  and  less  to  him.  Finally  he  made  his  decision 
and  gave  up  secular  business  entirely  that  he  might  devote  his 
whole  strength  and  time  to  practical  work  for  the  Lord. 

"  God  Will  Provide  " 

This  was  no  sudden  decision,  no  lightning  conviction  of  a  great 
duty.  On  the  contrary,  the  step  was  decided  upon  only  after  mature 
deliberation  and  a  thorough  test  of  his  fitness  for  his  chosen  work. 
His  first  ambition  had  been  to  become  a  great  merchant ;  now  this 
was  thrown  aside,  and  when  at  last  he  bade  good-bye  to  business,  he 
;  said  to  one  of  his  friends,  "  I  have  decided  to  give  to  God  all  my 
i  time  ".  "  But  how  are  you  going  to  live  ?"  asked  his  friend.  Mr. 
Moody  replied,  "  God  will  provide  for  me,  if  he  wishes  me  to  keep 
on,  and  I  shall  keep  on  until  I  am  obliged  to  stop." 

There  was  no  unpleasantness  in  his  severance  of  the  old  business 
connections.  All  his  former  employers  spoke  in  the  highest  terms 
of  Mr.  Moody  and  of  his  work  with  them.  Said  Mr.  Hill,  a  member 
of  the  last  firm  for  whom  he  worked,  "  One  day  not  long  after  he 
left  our  house  I  ran  across  him,  and  I  asked  him,  '  Moody,  what  are 
you  doing?  '      '  I  am  at  work  for  Jesus  Christ,'  was  the  reply.     At  first 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS  m 

his  answer  shocked   me   a  little,  but  after   I    had  thought  it  over 

I    decided  that  it  Avas  a  fair  statement  of   the    facts  in  the  case.   It 

was  true  ;  that  was  just  what  he  was  doing,  and  his  work  for  the  Lord 

was   as   vigorous,    as  practical,    as    it    had    always  been    for  other 

employers."     Mr.  Hill  added  that  Mr,  Moody  had  left  the   employ 

of  his   firm  in   the   pleasantest   circumstances,  having  retained  his 

Christian  character  unblemished.      All  of  his  old  employers,  as  a 

matter  of  fact,  not  only  bade  him  God  speed  when   he  left   them, 

but  kept  some  track  of  his  future  course,  with  the  conviction,  even 

in  those  early  days,  that  he  would  succeed  in   accomplishing  great 

things. 

Free  to  Devote  His  Time  to   His  Mission 

It  had  not  been  difficult  for  Mr.  Moody,  during  his  years  of 
business  life,  to  lay  up  a  considerable  sum  of  money  out  of  his 
salary,  for  his  living  expenses  were  very  light  and  his  frugality  a 
matter  of  record  ;  but  a  great  part  of  what  he  earned  went  into 
his  mission  work.  Before  leaving  the  world  of  business  he  set 
aside  a  certain  sum.  Part  of  this  money  he  invested,  but  he  saved 
out  $i,ooo  to  pay  his  first  year's  expenses.  He  was  now  happy. 
Free  to  devote  his  time  to  his  loved  Mission,  and  to  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  work,  which  was  becoming  almost  equally  dear  to  him,  and 
conscious  of  the  fact  that  he  had  in  his  pocket  money  to  enable 
him  to  accomplish  many  of  his  plans,  he  set  out  with  a  light  heart 
on  his  new  life.  And  yet,  it  was  not  a  new  life,  it  was  simply  a 
ripening  of  those  seeds  which  had  been  sown  back  there  in  his 
uncle's  store  in  Boston  when  he  first  gave  his  heart  to  the  Lord. 

One  of  the  first  things  he  did  was  to  invest  part  of  his  thou- 
sand dollars  in  a  small  pony.  With  the  help  of  this  animal  he  was 
able  to  extend  his  missionary  excursions  over  a  much  wider  area,  and 
to  accomplish  much  more  than  theretofore.  The  sight  of  Mr. 
Moody  on  his  pony  became  a  familiar  one  in  the  poor  districts  of 


112  GIVING  UP  BUSINESS  < 

Chicago.  It  is  said  that  often  after  a  Sunday  morning  hunt  for 
Sunday  school  recruits,  he  would  be  seen  emerging  from  some 
squalid  street,  surrounded  by  children,  some  of  whom  had  clam- 
bered upon  the  pony  with  him,  while  others  hung  to  the  bridle 
reins   or  marched  behind  in  procession  on  their  way  to  the  Sunday 

school. 

His  Means  Exhausted 

Meanwhile  the  thousand  dollars  quickly  vanished.  It  did  not 
prove  enough  to  meet  half  the  demands  which  the  mission  work 
and  various  other  deeds  of  charity  brought  upon  Mr.  Moody. 
Then  the  rest  of  his  small  fortune  disappeared,  and  he  found  him- 
self reduced  to  the  proverbial  water  and  a  crust.  One  of  the  few 
books  which  he  had  read  was  the  life  of  George  Miiller,  whose 
work  of  faith  in  England  had  impressed  him  so  deeply  that  he 
determined  to  follow  that  good  man's  principle  and  trust  in  the 
Lord  even  for  his  sustenance.  When  the  growth  of  the  Y.  M. 
C.  A.  noon  prayer  meetings  necessitated  their  removal  to  a  large 
backroom  in  the  First  Methodist  Church  block,  Mr.  Moody  betook 
himself  there,  and,  though  at  length  brought  to  the  necessity  of 
sleeping  on  the  benches  of  the  prayer  room  and  living  on  crackers 
and  cheese,  he  kept  on  with  his  work,  not  even  making  his  condi- 
tion known  to  his  friends,  who  would  have  been  glad  to  help  him. 
All  this  time  he  was  collecting  considerable  sums  for  charitable  pur- 
poses, but  not  one  cent  did  he  devote  to  himself.  He  had  deter- 
mined to  give  his  faith  a  thorough  test.  At  times  he  must  have 
felt  some  faltering,  but  at  those  times  the  Lord  always  gave  him 
some  reassurance. 

After  a  time  some  of  his  friends  began  to  wonder  how  he  was 
living,  and  were  greatly  astonished  at  the  result  of  the  investiga- 
tions. Discovering  his  poverty,  they  insisted  upon  supplying  him 
with    the    necessities    of   life.     From    this    time  on,  trust  in  God 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS  113 

always  brought  Mr.  Moody  an  answer  to  his  needs.  This  does 
not  mean  that  he  was  never  tried,  but  simply  that,  taking  every- 
thing into  consideration,  he  was  supplied  comfortably,  and  some- 
times even  bountifully.  People  who  knew  him  came  to  esteem  it  a 
privilege  to  help  him. 

It  is  of  interest  here  to  give  Mr.  Moody's  own  narrative  of 
the  incident  which  finally  influenced  his  decision  to  leave  business 
for  Christian  work.  ..,,,..,,,,.,.^.-.''.^-...»^ 

Moody's  Own   Narrative 

"  I  had  never  lost  sight  of  Jesus  Christ  since  the  first  night  I 
met  Him  in  the  store  in  Boston.  But  for  years  I  was  only  a 
nominal  Christian,  really  believing  that  I  could  not  work  for  God. 
No  one  had  ever  asked  me  to  do  anything. 

"  I  went  to  Chicago,  I  hired  five  pews  in  a  church,  and  used  to 
go  out  on  the  street  and  pick  up  young  men  and  fill  these  pews. 
I  never  spoke  to  those  young  men  about  their  souls  ;  that  was  the 
work  of  the  elders,  I  thought.  After  working  for  some  time  like 
that,  I  started  a  mission  Sabbath  school.  I  thought  numbers  were 
everything,  and  so  I  worked  for  numbers.  When  the  attendance 
ran  below  one  thousand,  it  troubled  me  ;  and  when  it  ran  to  twelve 
or  fifteen  hundred,  I  was  elated.  Still  none  were  converted ; 
there  was  no  harvest.      Then  God  opened  my  eyes. 

"  There  was  a  class  of  young  ladies  in  the  school,  who  were, 
without  exception,  the  most  frivolous  set  of  girls  I  ever  met.  One 
Sunday  the  teacher  was  ill,  and  I  took  that  class.  They  laughed 
in  my  face,  and  I  felt  like  opening  the  door  and  telling  them  all  to 
get  out  and  never  come  back.  That  week  the  teacher  of  the  class 
came  into  the  place  where  I  worked.  He  was  pale,  and  looked 
very  ill.  '  What  is  the  trouble  ? '  I  asked.  '  I  have  had  another 
hemorrhage  of  my  lungs.     The  doctor  says  I  cannot  live  on  Lake 


114 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 


Michigan,  so    I    am  going  to   New  York  State.      I   suppose    1    am 
going  home  to  die.' 

"  He  seemed  greatly  troubled,  and  when  I  asked  him  the 
reason,  he  replied  :  '  Well,  I  have  never  led  any  of  my  class  to 
Christ.  I  really  believe  I  have  done  the  girls  more  harm  than 
good.'  I  had  never  heard  any  one  talk  like  that  before,  and  it  set 
me  thinking.  After  a  while  I  said  :  '  Suppose  you  go  and  tell  them 
how  you  feel.      1  will  go  with  you  in  a  carriage,  if  you  want  to  go.' 

They  Sought  Salvation 

"  He  consented,  and  we  started  out  together.  It  was  one  of 
the  best  journeys  I  ever  had  on  earth.  We  went  to  the  house  of 
one  of  the  girls,  called  for  her,  and  the  teacher  talked  to  her  about 
her  soul.  There  was  no  laughing  then  !  Tears  stood  in  her  eyes 
before  long.  After  he  had  explained  the  way  of  life,  he  suggested 
that  we  have  prayer.  He  asked  me  to  pray.  True,  I  had  never 
done  such  a  thing  in  my  life  as  to  pray  God  to  convert  a  young 
lady  there  and  then.  But  we  prayed,  and  God  answered  our  prayer. 
We  went  to  other  houses.  He  would  go  upstairs,  and  be  all  out 
of  breath,  and  he  would  tell  the  eirls  what  he  had  come  for.  It 
wasn't  long  before  they  broke  down,  and  sought  salvation. 

"  When  his  strength  gave  out,  I  took  him  back  to  his  lodgings. 
The  next  day  we  went  out  again.  At  the  end  of  ten  days  he  came 
to  the  store  with  his  face  literally  shining.  '  Mr.  Moody,'  he  said, 
'  the  last  one  of  my  class  has  yielded  herself  to  Christ'  I  tell  you 
we  had  a  time  of  rejoicing.  He  had  to  leave  the  next  night,  so  I 
called  his  class  together  that  night  for  a  prayer  meeting,  and  there 
God  kindled  a  fire  in  my  soul  that  ha3  never  gone  out.  The  height 
of  my  ambition  had  been  to  be  a  successful  merchant,  and,  if  I  had 
known  that  meeting  was  going  to  take  that  ambition  out  of  me,  I 
might  not  have  gone.      But  how  many  times  I  have  thanked  God 


D.  L.   MOODY  AT  THE  AGE  OF  3j,  from  a  steel  engraving 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS  117 

since  for  that  meeting  !  The  dying  teacher  sat  in  the  midst  of  his 
class,  and  talked  with  them,  and  read  the  fourteenth  chapter  of 
John.  We  tried  to  sing  '  Blest  be  the  tie  that  binds,'  after  which 
we  knelt  down  to  prayer.  I  was  just  rising  from  my  knees,  when 
one  of  the  class  began  to  pray  for  her  dying  teacher.  Another 
prayed,  and  another,  and  before  we  rose,  the  whole  class  had 
prayed.  As  I  went  out  I  said  to  myself :  '  O,  God,  let  me  die 
rather  than  lose  the  blessing  I  have  received  to-nigrht  !' 

"  The  next  morning  I  went  to  the  depot  to  say  good-bye  to 
that  teacher.  Just  before  the  train  started,  one  of  the  class  came, 
and  before  long,  without  any  prearrangement,  they  were  all  there. 
What  a  meeting  that  was  !  We  tried  to  sing,  but  we  broke  down. 
The  last  we  saw  of  that  dying  teacher,  he  was  standing  on  the  plat- 
form of  the  car,  his  finger  pointing  upward,  telling  that  class  to 
meet  him  in  Heaven.  I  didn't  know  what  this  was  going  to  cost 
me.  I  was  disqualified  for  business  ;  it  had  become  distasteful  to 
me.  I  had  got  a  taste  of  another  world,  and  cared  no  more  for 
making  money.  For  some  days  after,  the  greatest  struggle  of  my 
life  took  place.  Should  I  give  up  business  and  give  myself  to 
Christian  work,  or  should  I  not  ?  I  have  never  regretted  my  choice. 
O,  the  luxury  of  leading  some  one  out  of  the  darkness  of  this 
world  into  the  glorious  light  and  liberty  of  the  Gospel  !  " 

Mr.   Moody's  Marriage 

It  is  time  to  speak  of  Mr.  Moody's  marriage.  There  was  a 
lady  who  for  some  years  had  been  a  helper  in  his  Mission.  His 
first  acquaintance  with  her  dated  from  that  little  North  Side 
Mission  Sunday  school  in  which  he  was  offered  a  class  on  condition 
that  he  provide  his  own  pupils.  The  interest  of  Mr.  Moody  for 
this  young  lady,  whose  name  was  Miss  Emma  C.  Revell,  grevv^ 
deeper  and  deeper,  and  meanwhile  her  interest  in  him  developed. 


ii8  GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 

It  would  hardly  be  thought  by  the  average  man  of  affairs,  that 
marriage  was  a  safe  step  for  a  man  who  had  thrown  up  all  business 
and  had  entered  upon  unsalaried  mission  work.  But  Mr.  Moody 
was  livino-  the  life  of  trust,  and  the  faith  of  Miss  Revell  was  not 
less  strong.      They  were  married  August  28,  1862. 

They  made  their  first  home  in  a  small  cottage.  A  hospitable 
home  it  was,  and  a  cheery  one,  and  yet  the  little  household  was 
sometimes  in  great  straits.  Even  after  his  marriage,  Mr.  Moody 
continued  to  refuse  all  offers  of  a  salary.  Often  the  family  was  in 
sight  of  want,  but  the  Lord  never  permitted  real  distress.  A  num- 
ber of  instances  are  related  of  the   ways   in  which   his  trust  in  God 

was  honored. 

A  Remarkable  and  Surprising  Gift 

A  remarkable  way  in  which  the  Lord  remembered  Mr.  Moody, 
was  by  the  gift  of  a  new  and  completely  furnished  home.  An  old 
friend  had  erected  a  row  of  fine  houses,  one  of  which  he  privately 
set  aside  for  Mr.  Moody,  free  of  rent,  on  the  understanding  that 
the  evangelist's  other  friends  would  furnish  it.  The  enterprise  was 
taken  up  with  enthusiasm,  all  unknowm  to  Mr.  Moody  and  his  wife, 
and  the  house  was  fitted  up  comfortably.  Early  on  a  New  Year's 
morning  Mr,  Moody  and  his  family  were  captured  and  driven  to 
the  house.  When  they  entered  they  were  surprised  to  find  it  full 
of  acquaintances  and  friends.  Their  surprise  was  turned  to 
gratitude  and  joy  when  a  spokesman  of  the  company  handed  to  Mr. 
Moody  a  lease  of  the  house  and  the  free  gift  of  all  it  contained 
This  home  was  not  long  left  to  them,  for  the  great  Chicago  fire 
carried  it  away. 

No  Life  of  Mr.  Moody  would  be  complete  without  further  refer- 
ence to  his  wife,  who  has  been  his  constant  companion  in  all  hij 
sorrows  and  his  joys.  She  is  of  a  retiring  disposition,  and  yet  in 
that  day  of  rewards  when  D.  L.  Moody  is  crowned,  it  is  the  opinion 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 


119 


of  his  many  friends  who  know  whereof  they  speak,  that  Mrs.  Moody 
will  have  no  small  share  of  reward. 

Mr.  Ira  D.  Sankey  has  said,  "Amid  all  that  has  been  said 
about  what  has  made  Mr.  Moody  so  great  a  man,  I  want  to  say 
that  one  of  the  greatest  influences  of  his  life  came  from  his  wife. 
She  has  been  the  break  upon  an  impetuous  nature,  and  she  more 
than  any  other  living  person  is  responsible  for  his  success." 

His  Wife  and   Her  Influence 

She  has  been  more  than  interested  in  his  work  from  the  begfin- 
ning.  In  connection  with  his  Sunday  school  work  in  Chicago,  the 
following  incident  is  told  :  "  A  stranger  who  was  visiting  the  Sunday 
school  in  Chicago,  noticed  a  lady  teaching  a  class  of  about  forty 
middle-aged  men,  in  the  gallery.  Looking  at  her  and  then  at  the 
class,  he  said  to  Mr.  Moody,  '  Is  not  that  lady  altogether  too  young 
to  teach  such  a  class  of  men  ?  She  seems  to  me  very  youthful  for 
such  a  position.'  Mr.  Moody  replied,  '  She  gets  along  very  well, 
and  seems  to  succeed  in  her  teaching.'  The  stranger  did  not  appear 
to  be  altogether  satisfied.  He  walked  about  the  school,  evidently 
in  an  anxious  state  of  mind.  In  a  few  moments  he  approached  the 
superintendent  again,  and,  with  becoming  gravity,  said,  *  Mr. 
Moody,  I  can  not  but  feel  that  that  lady  must  be  altogether  too 
young  to  instruct  such  a  large  company  of  men.  Will  you,  sir, 
please  to  inform  me  who  she  is  ? '  *  Certainly,'  replied  Mr.  Moody, 
'  that  is  my  wife.'  The  stranger  made  no  more  inquiries,  and 
nothing  occurred  to  indicate  the  state  of  his  mind  during  the  remain- 
der of  his  visit " 

One  of  the  members  of  his  family  has  said,  '*  No  man  ever 
paid  greater  homage  to  his  wife  than  Mr.  Moody.  I  never  met 
with  a  happier  couple.  In  every  way  he  deferred  to  her.  She 
answered  all  his  voluminous  correspondence.     She  was  the  person 


I20  GIVING  UP  BUSINESS 

to  whom  he  always  spoke  of  his  plans  and  his  work.  No  trouble 
was  too  great  for  him,  if  he  could  save  her  any  bother  or  every-day, 
ordinary  little  troubles." 

Mrs.  Moody  has  done  some  remarkable  work  in  the  inquiry 
meetings  held  in  different  parts  of  the  country.  One  of  my  dear 
friends  is  Mr.  E.  P.  Brown,  for  a  long  time  the  editor  of  the 
Rants  Horn.  I  knew  him  in  the  days  of  his  infidelity.  A  more  l 
bitter  infidel  I  have  never  known  in  my  life.  He  has  told  me  how 
one  night  he  entered  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church  that  he 
might  criticise  Moody  in  his  article  which  he  was  writing  for  his 
infidel  paper.  Mr.  Moody's  sermon  was  on  the  father  of  the 
prodigal,  and  looking  squarely  into  the  face  of  my  friend,  he  said, 
'•  My  friend,  the  father  of  the  prodigal  is  the  picture  of  God,  and 
as  the  father  of  the  prodigal  is  waiting  for  his  son,  so  God  is  wait- 
ing for  you." 

"  I   Would   Like  to  Know  Him  " 

E.  P.  Brown  was  startled.  He  has  since  said :  "  I  heard 
the  theologians  talk  about  God,  and  I  hated  Him,  but  I  had  a 
father  and  I  knew  what  his  love  was,  and  I  found  myself  saying. 
If  this  is  the  true  picture  of  God  then  I  would  like  to  know  Him." 
When  the  invitation  was  given  for  the  inquiry  meeting,  E.  P. 
Brown  accepted  it,  and  it  was  Mrs.  Moody  who  gave  him  help 
which  finally  led  him  out  of  his  darkness  of  unbelief  and  led  him 
into  the  glorious  light  and  liberty  in  which  he  now  stands  as  a  son 
of  God. 

This  is  but  one  instance.  Hundreds  of  others  might  be 
repeated.  We  can  quite  understand,  therefore,  how  it  is  that  from 
the  very  day  when  D.  L.  Moody  determined  to  give  up  his  business 
to  the  last  moment  of  his  life  when  he  said  good-bye  to  his  beloved 
wife,  she  was  more  helpful  and  inspiring  to  him  than  any  other 
person  in  the  world, 


GIVING  UP  BUSINESS  j^j 

Mr.  Moody's  family  consists  of  three  children. 

William  Revell  Moody,  his  eldest  child,  has  ever  been  the 
constant  companion  of  his  father,  who  relied  upon  him.  If  a 
father's  mantle  may  fall  upon  his  son's  shoulders,  William  R. 
Moody  in  his  father's  purpose  and  plan,  ought  to  lead  in  the  carry- 
ing on  of  his  great  work.  He  is  a  graduate  of  Yale  and  is  a 
consecrated  Christian  man  with  a  great  desire  to  do  everything  his 
father  could  wish.  He  is  happily  married  to  the  eldest  daughter 
of  Major  D.  W.  Whittle.  It  was  with  great  pleasure  that  the 
Christian  world  knew  that  in  this  way  these  two  families  so  greatly 
used  of  God  were  so  happily  to  be  brought  into  closer  and  more 
sacred  relations.  Mrs.  W.  R.  Moody  is  the  author  of  the  hymn 
'"  Moment  by  Moment",  and  has  been  very  useful  in  Christian  service 
both  at  home  and  abroad. 

Mr.   Moody's  Family 

Emma  Moody  Fitt,  Mr.  Moody's  second  child,  was  as  near  to 
him  as  a  daughter  can  be  to  her  father.  The  most  intense  affec- 
tion made  them  one  in  their  interests  and  work.  She  is  the  wife 
of  Mr.  A.  P.  Fitt,  for  some  time  Mr.  Moody's  private  secretary, 
and  latterly  his  valued  helper  in  every  way.  I  have  heard  Mr. 
Moody  say  again  and  again,  "  I  do  not  know  how  I  should  get 
along,  if  it  were  not  for  Fitt."  Fie  has  been  the  superintendent 
and  prime  mover  in  the  colportage  work  in  Chicago,  and  Mr. 
Moody's  work  in  general  owes  much  to  his  faithful,  untiring  and 
affectionate  interest. 

Paul,  the  second  son  and  youngest  child,  is  a  member  of  the 
Junior  Class  at  Yale  College.  An  earnest,  active  Christian  young 
man,  he  is  making  his  life  tell  for  Christ  among  the  students  and  giv- 
ing great  promise  of  future  usefulness  in  the  world.  Very  many  peo- 
ple look  to  him  in  future  days  largely  to  carry  on  his  father's  public 
work. 


CHAPTER   IX. 

Moody  and  Sankey 

N    international    convention    of   the   Young   Men's    Christian 

Association  was   held  at   Indianapolis   in   June,  1870.      Mr. 

Moody  attended.      During  the  convention  an  early  morning 

prayer- meeting  was  conducted  in  a  church  adjoining  the  hall  where 

the  convention  was  held.      Mr.  Moody  led  this  meeting. 

Ira  D.  Sankey,  who  at  that  time  was  Assistant  Collector  of 
Revenue  in  New  Castle,  Pa.,  but  whose  interest  in  religious  work 
had  made  him  an  active  worker  in  the  field,  had  come  to  Indianapolis 
to  attend  the  convention.  He  had  heard  of  Mr.  Moody,  but  had 
never  seen  him,  and  learning  that  the  Chicago  preacher  was  to  lead 
this  morning  meeting,  he  yielded  to  a  strong  impulse  and  attended. 

Mr.   Sankey's  First  Singing  at  a  Moody   Meeting 

When  Mr.  Sankey  entered,  the  singing  was  being  led  by  a  man 
who  was  dragging  through  a  long  metre  hymn  in  the  slow  old- 
fashioned  way.  Mr.  Sankey  was  scarcely  seated  when  some  one 
touched  his  elbow,  and  turning  around,  he  discovered  that  he  was 
sitting  beside  the  Rev.  Robert  McMillen,  with  whom  he  happened 
to  be  well  acquainted.  Mr.  McMillen  whispered  to  Mr.  Sankey 
that  nobody  present  seemed  able  to  put  any  life  into  the  singing, 
adding,  "When  that  man  who  is  praying  gets  through,  I  wish  you 
would  start  up  something." 

Without  waiting  for  any  further  invitation,  Mr.  Sankey  arose 
and  sanof  with  wonderful  feeling:, 

J22 


MOODY  AND  SAN  KEY  123 

"There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood, 
Drawn  from  Immanuel's  veins, 
And  sinners  plunged  beneath  that  flood, 
Lose  ail  their  guilty  stains. ' ' 

The  power  and  fervor  of  the  singer's  voice  was  such  that  the 
congregation  forgot  to  join  in  the  chorus,  and  Mr.  Sankey  finished 
the  hymn  by  himself. 

The  effect  of  this  song  was  not  missed  by  Mr.  Moody.  At 
the  close  of  the  service,  when  Mr.  McMillen  brought  Mr.  Sankey 
forward,  Mr.  Moody  stepped  to  one  side  and  took  the  singer  by 
the  hand.  "  Where  do  you  come  from  ?"  he  asked,  "  Pennsyl- 
vania," replied  Mr.  Sankey.  "Are  you  married  or  single?" 
"  Married  ;  I  have  a  wife  and  one  child."  "  What  business  are  you 
in?"  "I  am  a  government  official  connected  with  the  Internal 
Revenue  service,"  answered  Mr.  Sankey,  not  realizing  what  motive 
was  subjecting  him  to  such  cross-examination. 

A  Sudden   Proposition 

"Well,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  decidedly,  "you  will  have  to  give 
that  up  ;  I  have  been  looking  for  you  for  eight  years."  Mr.  Sankey 
stood  amazed  and  was  at  a  loss  to  understand  just  what  Mr.  Moody 
meant  by  telling  him  that  he  would  have  to  give  up  a  comfortable 
position,  and  he  was  so  taken  aback  for  a  few  seconds  that  he  could 
scarcely  reply.  At  last,  however,  recovering  from  his  astonish- 
ment, he  asked  the  evangelist  what  he  meant.  Mr.  Moody  promptly 
explained.  "You  will  have  to  give  up  your  government  position 
and  come  with  me.  You  are  just  the  man  I  have  been  looking 
for,  for  a  long  time.  I  want  you  to  come  with  me  ;  you  can  do  the 
singing,  and  I  will  do  the  talking." 

The  proposition  did  not  sound  particularly  attractive  to  Mr. 
Sankey,  and  he  told  Mr.  Moody,  that  he  did  not  feel  he  could 
accept   it  and  begged  for   time   in  which   to  consider  the  matter. 


1 24  MOOD  Y  AND  SANKE Y 

Mr.  Moody  asked  him  if  he  would  join  him  in  prayer  in  regard  to 
it,  and  the  singer  repHed  that  he  would  most  gladly  do  so.  Says 
Mr.  Sankey,  "  I  presume  I  prayed  one  way  and  he  prayed  an- 
other ;  however,  it  took  him  only  six  months  to  pray  me  out  of 
business."  It  was  true  that  Mr.  Moody  was  praying  that  Mr. 
Sankey  would  see  his  way  clear  to  do  as  he  had  asked,  while  Mr. 
Sankey  was  arguing  with  himself  against  the  proposition.  This 
first  meeting  between  the  two  men  was  on  Sunday.  All  that  day 
and  night  Mr.  Sankey  thought  over  Mr.  Moody's  words,  but  the 
next  morningf  found  him  still  inclined  to  stick  to  the  o-overnment 
position  with  its  assured  salary. 

A  Street  Service 

Just  at  a  moment  when  he  was  in  considerable  doubt  as  to 
the  suitable  course,  a  card  was  brought  him  which  on  examination 
proved  to  be  from  Mr.  Moody.  It  requested  him  to  meet  Mr, 
Moody  at  a  certain  street  corner  that  evening  at  six  o'clock.  Mr. 
Sankey  did  not  know  what  he  was  wanted  for,  but  he  accepted  the 
invitation,  and,  accompanied  by  a  few  friends,  met  the  appointment 
promptly.  In  a  few  minutes  Mr.  Moody  appeared,  and  without 
stopping  to  speak,  walked  into  a  store  on  the  corner  and  asked  per- 
mission to  use  a  dry-goods  box.  The  permission  granted,  the 
evangelist  rolled  a  large  box  out  to  the  edge  of  the  sidewalk,  and 
then  calling  Mr.  Sankey  aside  asked  him  to  climb  up  and  sing 
something.  Mr.  Sankey  complied.  A  crowd  began  to  collect,  and 
Mr.  Moody  getting  upon  the  box  began  to  preach.  Mr.  Sankey 
says  of  that  sermon,  "  He  preached  that  evening  as  I  had  never 
heard  any  man  preach  before."  The  hearers,  most  of  them  working- 
men  on  their  way  home  from  the  mills  and  factories,  were  elec- 
trified. They  hung  on  every  word,  apparently  forgetting  that  they 
were  tired  and  hungry,  and  when  Mr.  Moody  closed,  which  he  was 


j 


,  *  ¥^^^B^H 

HI 

iti^K^ 

Mi 

MOODY  AND  SANKEY  liy 

forced  to  do  by  the  density  of  the  crowd,  he  announced  that  he 
would  hold  another  meeting  at  the  Academy  of  Music,  and  invited 
the  crowd  to  accompany  him  there.  Arm  in  arm  with  Mr.  Moody, 
Mr.  Sankey  marched  down  the  street  singing  hymn  after  hymn  as 
he  went,  the  crowd  following  closely  at  their  heels.  Mr.  Sankey 
has  since  declared  that  this  was  his  first  experience  in  Salva- 
tion Army  methods.  The  meeting  in  the  Academy  of  Music 
was  necessarily  brief  because  the  convention  was  soon  to  come 
together,  oddly  enough  to  discuss  the  question,  "  How  shall  we 
reach  the  masses?"  and  as  the  delegates  came  in  Mr.  Moody,  with 
a  short  prayer  dismissed  the  meeting. 

Mr.   Sankey  Joins   Forces  With   Mr.   Moody 

Although  deeply  affected  by  the  power  of  Mr.  Moody's  inspir- 
ing message,  Mr.  Sankey  was  still  undecided.  He  went  home  to 
talk  the  matter  over  with  his  wife,  and  to  her  the  proposed  partner- 
ship seemed,  at  that  time,  an  unwarranted  and  injudicious  step,  but 
after  several  months,  the  influence  of  Mr.  Moody's  invitation  still 
working  in  him,  he  went  by  request  to  Chicago  and  spent  a  week 
with  Mr.  Moody.  For  several  days  they  worked  together  in  church, 
in  Sunday  school,  in  saloons  and  drinking  dens,  joining  their  gifts 
of  speaking  and  singing  to  bring  light  to  the  discouraged  and  the 
sinful.  When  the  week  was  over,  Mr.  Sankey  had  decided.  He 
sent  his  resignation  to  Hugh  McCuUoch,  who  at  that  time  was 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  ;  another  veteran  of  the  War  was  given 
his  place  in  the  Internal  Revenue  Service,  and  Mr.  Sankey  joined 
forces  with  Mr.  Moody. 

This  was  about  six  months  before  the  great  Chicago  fire. 
When  that  tidal  wave  of  flame  overwhelmed  that  part  of  Chicago 
where  Mr.  Moody's  work  was  especially  located,  and  destroyed 
his  church  and  his  home,  the  evangelist's  plans  were  for  a 
time    completely   disarranged,    and    he   went    for   a  tour    in    the 


128  MOODY  AND  SANKE Y 

Eastern  States,  while  Mr.  Sankey  returned  to  his  home  in  Penn- 
sylvania. But  when  the  new  tabernacle  sprang  from  the  ashes  of 
the  old,  the  two  brethren  once  more  began  their  labors,  taking  up 
their  lodgings  in  anterooms  of  the  great  rough  building,  and 
throwing  themselves  heart  and  soul  into  the  effort  to  bring  the 
unfortunate  people  to  Christ.  This  work  in  the  rough  chapel 
among  the  ruins  was  signalized  by  a  great  revival.  While  Mr. 
Moody  was  on  his  second  visit  to  Great  Britain  in  1872,  Mr. 
Sankey  took  charge  of  the  meetings.  Mr.  Moody  had  gone  more 
especially  to  attend  the  Mildmay  Conference  in  London.  When  he 
returned,  he  found  that  Mr.  Sankey  had  received  an  especial  baptism 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  that  the  blessings  of  his  work  had  been 
increased  a  thousand  fold  by  the  responsibilities  which  had  been  left 

with  him. 

Mr.  Sankey  Follows  Mr.  Moody  to  England 

It  was  about  this  time,  possibly  under  the  influence  of  this 
second  trip  to  England,  that  Mr.  Moody  decided  upon  that  third 
tour  which  was  to  bring  to  Great  Britain  a  spiritual  regeneration 
uch  as  had  not  been  known  since  the  days  of  John  Wesley.  Mr. 
Moody  said  to  his  co-worker,  "  You  have  often  proposed  that  we 
make     an     evangelizing    journey    together ;    now    let    us    go     to 

England." 

Again  Mr.  Sankey  found  himself  in  some  doubt  as  to  his 
proper  decision.  It  happened  that  he  was  then  considering  an 
offer  from  Mr.  Phillips  to  go  to  the  Pacific  Coast  and  give  a  series 
of  "  Evenings  of  Song."  Fortunately  he  again  decided  to  follow 
Mr.  Moody.  Possibly  he  was  influenced  in  his  decision  by  a 
realization  that  if  he  went  with  Mr,  Phillips  he  would  be  associated 
with  a  man  whose  gifts  were  similar  to  his  own,  a  condition  which 
might  lead  to  difficulties,  while  if  he  went  with  Mr.  Moody  he 
would  have  his  own  work  to  do   entirely  separate  from  the  work  of 


MOODY  AND  SANKET  129 

Mr.  Moody,  although  complementary  to  it.  So  attended  by  his 
little  family,  he  trustfully  set  forth  with  Mr.  Moody  and  his  family, 
June  7,  1873,  ^^  ^  journey  of  four  thousand  miles. 

The  joyful,  prayerful  singing  of  the  Gospel  hymns  by  Mr. 
Sankey  was  a  revelation  of  unexpected  truth  and  grace  to  the 
people  of  the  British  Isles.  In  Scotland  especially,  the  masses 
were  moved  by  him.  With  an  indescribable  impulse,  the  cautious, 
distrustful  followers  of  John  Knox,  worshippers  who  for  genera- 
tions had  been  accustomed  to  reject  as  uninspired  all  other  services 
of  praise  than  their  own  rude  version  of  the  Psalms,  now  listened 
with  delight  to  the  music  which  fell  like  a  blessing  from  the  lips  of 
the  most  gifted  Christian  singer  of  the  time. 

Sankey's  Singing  in  Edinburgh 

One  of  his  hearers  has  thus  described  the  impression  made  by 
Mr.  Sankey's  singing  in  Edinburgh.  "  Mr.  Sankey  sings  with  the 
conviction  that  souls  are  receiving  Jesus  between  one  note  and  the 
next.  The  stillness  is  overawing ;  some  of  the  lines  are  more 
spoken  than  sung.  The  hymns  are  equally  used  for  awakening, 
none  more  than  'Jesus  of  Nazareth  Passeth  By'.  When  you  . 
hear  the  *  Ninety  and  Nine  '  sung,  you  know  of  a  truth  that  down 
in  this  corner,  up  in  that  gallery,  behind  that  pillar  which  hides  the  I 
singer's  face  from  the  listener,  the  hand  of  Jesus  has  been  finding 
this  and  that  and  yonder  lost  one  to  place  them  in  His  fold.  A 
certain  class  of  hearers  come  to  the  services  solely  to  hear  Mr. 
Sankey,  and  the  song  draws  the  Lord's  net  around  them.  We 
asked  Mr.  Sankey  one  day  what  he  was  to  sing.  He  said,  '  I'll 
not  know  till  I  hear  how  Mr.  Moody  is  closing.'  Again  we  were 
driving  to  the  Canongate  Parish  Church  one  winter  night,  and  Mr. 
Sankey  said  to  the  young  minister  who  had  come  for  him,  '  I  am 
thinking  of  singing  '  I    am   so  Glad  '    to-night.      '  O  ! '    said     the 


150  MOODY  AND  SANKEY 

young  man,  '  please  rather  sing  'Jesus  of  Nazareth.*     An  old  man 

told  me  to-day  that  he  had  been  awakened  by  it  the  last  night  you 

were  down.      He  said,  '  It  just   went  through  me  like   an  electric 

shock.'      A   gentleman  in  Edinburgh  was  in  distress  of  soul,  and 

happened  to  linger  in  a  pew  after  the  noon  meeting.      The  choir 

had    remained    to    practice    and   began,    '  Free  from   the  Law,  O, 

Happy  Condition.'     Quickly  the  Spirit  of  God  carried  the  truth 

home  to  the  awakened  conscience,  and  he  was  at  last  in  the  finished 

work  of  Jesus." 

Sankey's  Favorite  Hymn 

Mr.  Sankey's  hymns  were  gathered  from  a  hundred  sources. 
A  great  many  of  them  are  to-day  known  by  every  child  in  the  land 
and  are  remembered  by  many  other  persons  as  means  of  grace  in 
their  own  conversions.  Of  all  his  songs  the  favorite  was, 
"  The  Ninety  and  Nine".  This  beautiful  hymn  has  an  interesting 
little  history. 

While  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  were  in  the  Highlands  of 
Scotland  they  were  subjected  to  some  criticisms  because  Mr.  Sankey's' 
music  was  so  much  of  a  deviation  from  the  established  music  of  the 
Scotch  churches.  Anxious  not  to  offend  the  prejudices  of  any  in  the 
multitudes  whom  they  were  meeting,  Mr.  Sankey  cast  about  him  for 
a  song  which  might  satisfy  not  only  the  hearts,  but  the  ears  as  well  of 
the  rough  shepherds  of  the  Highlands.  One  day  in  the  corner  of  a 
newspaper  he  found  the  words  of  "The  Ninety  and  Nine".  They 
had  originally  been  printed  in  The  Christian,  of  Boston,  Mass., 
and  were  reprinted  in  England  in  The  Rock.  The  melody  came  to 
him  like  an  inspiration.  The  first  time  he  sang  it,  it  was  not  even 
written  out.  It  is  natural  that  a  song  like  this  should  have  ap- 
pealed to  the  shepherds  of  Scotland,  to  whom  its  sentiment  came 
with  an  especially  pleasing  force.  It  became  their  favorite  among 
Mr.  Sankey's  songs,  and  when  he  went  to  Ireland  and  England  it 


MOODY  AND  SANKEY  131 

was  called  for  more,  and  appreciated  more,  than  any  other  song  in 
his  collection. 

It  was  also  said  of  the  results  of  Mr.  Sankey's  singing,  "The 
wave  of  sacred  song  has  spread  over  Ireland  and  is  now  sweeping 
through  England,  but  indeed  it  is  not  being  confined  to  the  United 
Kingdom  alone.  Far  away  on  the  shores  of  India,  and  in  many 
other  lands,  these  sweet  songs  of  the  Saviour's  love  are  being  sung." 

"He  Sang  the   Gospel" 

It  was  not  alone  the  novelty  of  his  method  that  aroused 
interest  in  Mr.  Sankey's  songs  to  such  a  high  degree.  He  possessed 
a  voice  of  unusual  purity  and  strength,  and  even  when  facing  a 
great  congregation  of  seventeen  or  eighteen  thousand  people,  could 
make  every  word  which  he  uttered  so  distinct  that  it  was  heard  on 
the  very  outskirts  of  the  throng.  His  vocal  method  has  been 
criticised,  undoubtedly  with  justice,  but  it  can  be  said  that,  whether 
his  method  was  correct  or  incorrect  artistically,  it  was  at  least 
effective.  Patti  at  her  best  could  not  move  hearers  with  her  sing- 
ing in  the  way  that  Mr.  Sankey  won  the  hearts  of  his  audiences. 
He  literally,  as  he  himself  proclaimed,  "sang  the  Gospel  ". 

This  phrase,  novel  as  it  was,  was  criticised  by  many  staid 
conservatives  in  the  matter  of  religion,  but  its  truth  cannot  be 
questioned.  If  it  were  not  true  how  could  it  have  been  that  so 
many  should  have  been  led  to  Christ  through  the  influence  of  that 
marvelous  singing.  An  English  journal  has  told  of  a  little  girl 
only  ten  years  old  who  had  listened  with  delight  to  Mr.  Sankey's 
singing.  "  O  !"  she  said,  "  How  I  love  those  dear  hymns  !  When  I 
am  gone,  mother,  will  you  ask  the  girls  of  the  school  to  sing  the  hymn. 

*  Ring  the  bells  of  Heaven  ! 

There  is  joy  to-day, 
For  a  soul  returning  from  the  wild  ; 

See  the  Father  meets  him  out  upon  the  way, 
Welcoming  his  weary,  wandering  child. '  ' ' 


132  MOODY  AND  ^ANKEY 

The  night  before  her  death,  she  said,  "  Dear  father  and  mother, 
I  hope  I  shall  meet  you  in  Heaven.  You  cannot  think  how  bright 
and  happy  I  feel,"  and  half  an  hour  before  her  departure  she 
exclaimed,  "O!  mother,  listen  to  the  bells  of  Heaven,  they  are 
ringing  so  beautifully."  She  closed  her  eyes  awhile,  but  presently 
she  cried  again,  "Hearken  to  the  harps,  they  are  most  splendid; 
O  !  I  wish  you  could  hear  them,"'  and  then,  "  O  !  mother,  I  see 
the  Lord  Jesus  and  the  angels.  O,  if  you  could  see  them  too  ! 
He  is  sending  one  to  fetch  me  !"  About  five  minutes  before  her 
last  breath  she  said,  "  Lift  me  up  from  the  pillow  ;  high,  high  up  ! 
O  !  I  wish  you  could  lift  me  right  up  into  Heaven  !"  Then  doubt- 
less conscious  that  the  parting  moment  was  at  hand,  "  Put  me  down 
again,  quick,"  and  calmly,  joyously,  brightly,  with  her  eyes  upward, 
as  if  gazing  upon  some  vision  of  surpassing  beauty,  she  peacefully 
breathed  forth  her  spirit  into  the  arms  of  the  ministering  angels 
whom  Jesus  had  sent  for  her.  How  can  we  measure  what  the 
voice  of  the  singer  had  done  for  that  little  girl. 

A  Novelty  in   Religious  Work 

An  innovation  in  Mr.  Sankey's  singing  was  the  use  of  the  parlor 
organ  to  accompany  himself.  Wherever  he  went  this  little  instru- 
ment was  placed  upon  the  platform  for  his  use,  and  it  is  doubtful  if 
he  could  have  found  anything  more  effective  for  his  accompaniment. 
Criticised  it  was,  for,  like  "  singing  the  Gospel,"  it  was  a  novelty  in 
religious  work  and,  therefore,  was  frowned  upon  by  those  who  felt 
that  established  methods  should  never  be  violated.  It  was  even  i 
charged  that  he  had  been  sent  to  England  by  a  firm  of  organ 
makers  who  paid  him  a  large  salary  on  the  condition  that  he  use 
their  organs  in  his  services.  This  charge  was  denied  both  by  the 
organ  makers  and  by  Mr.  Sankey,  and  it  does  not  seem  likely  that 
a  man,  who  by  agreement  with  Mr.  Moody,  turned  over  a  fortune 


MOOD  Y  AND  SANKE  Y  153 

in  royalties  on  books  of  song  to  charitable  and  religious  purposes, 
would  stoop  to  accept  such  an  unworthy  tribute. 

At  a  children's  meeting  in  Edinburgh  in  1874,  Mr.  Sankey 
related  the  following  incident :  "  I  want  to  speak  a  word  about 
singing,  not  only  to  the  little  folks,  but  also  to  grown  people.  Dur- 
ing the  winter  after  the  great  Chicago  fire,  when  the  place  was 
built  up  with  little  frame  houses  for  the  poor  people  to  stay  in,  a 
mother  sent  for  me  one  day  to  come  to  see  her  little  child,  who  was 
one  of  our  Sunday  school  pupils.  I  remembered  the  little  girl  very 
well,  having  often  seen  her  in  our  meetings,  and  was  glad  to  go. 

A  Little  Girl's  Testimony 
She  was  lying  in  one  of  the  poor  little  huts,  all  the  property  of 
the  family  having  been  destroyed  by  the  fire.  I  ascertained  that  she 
was  beyond  all  hopes  of  recovery,  and  that  they  were  waiting  for 
the  little  one  to  pass  away.  '  How  is  it  with  you  to-day?'  I  asked. 
With  a  beautiful  smile  on  her  face,  she  said,  '  It  is  all  well  with  me 
to-day.  I  wish  you  would  speak  to  my  father  and  mother.'  '  But,' 
said  I,  '  are  you  a  Christian  ?  '  'Yes.'  '  When  did  you  become  one?' 
'  Do  you  remember  last  Thursday  in  the  Tabernacle  when  we  had 
that  little  singing  meeting,  and  you  sang,  'Jesus  Loves  Even  Me?' 
'Yes.'  '  It  was  last  Thursday  I  believed  on  the  Lord  Jesus,  and 
now  I  am  going  to  be  with  Him  to-day.'  That  testimony  from 
that  little  girl  in  that  neglected  quarter  of  Chicago  has  done  more 
to  stimulate  me  and  to  bring  me  to  this  country  than  all  that  the 
papers  or  any  persons  might  say.  I  remember  the  joy  I  felt  when 
I  looked  upon  that  beautiful  child  face.  She  went  up  to  Heaven, 
and  no  doubt  said  that  she  learned  upon  earth  that  Jesus  loved  her, 
from  that  little  hymn.  If  you  want  to  enjoy  a  blessing,  go  to  the 
couches  of  the  bedridden  and  dying  ones,  and  sing  to  them  of 
Jesus,  for  they  cannot  enjoy  these  meetings  as  you  do,  and  you  will 
get  a  great  blessing  to  your  own  soul." 


1 34  MOOD  Y  AND  SAN  KEY 

A  story  is  told  of  a  young  Highlander  who  had  lived  far  from 

the  Lord  for  so  long  that  his  pastor  had  come  to  believe  that  the 

truth   could    not    touch    him,  but  one   day    he    was    found    deeply 

awakened.    When  asked  what  had  brought  about  this  change  in  his 

feelings  he  said  that  it  was   the   result   of  hearing  his  little  sister 

sing 

"When  He   cometh,    when  He   cometh 
To  make  up  His  Jewels.  " 

During  the  great  revival  in  Scotland,  a  certain  writer  said, 
"  Perhaps  not  a  week  has  passed  during  the  last  year  in  which  we 
have  not  had  evidence  that  the  Lord  had  directly  used  a  line  of  one 
of  these  hymns  in  the  salvation  of  some  soul." 

Wonderful  Spiritual  Returns 

Mr.  Moody's  preaching,  Mr.  Sankey's  singing — how  indisso- 
lubly  these  two  are  associated  in  the  minds  of  millions  of  people  ! 
And  how  wonderful  were  the  spiritual  returns  that  this  partnership 
brought  !  Often  Mr.  Moody's  words  would  bring  a  sinner  to  the 
point  of  conviction,  and  then  the  tender  pathos  of  Mr.  Sankey's 
singing  would  let  a  great  flood  of  blessing  into  that  sinner's  soul, 
and  the  softening  influences  would  work  until  he  would  cry  out  in 
his  joy,  "  I  am  saved  ! "  And,  on  the  other  hand,  when  a  meeting 
had  just  begun,  and  away  back  in  the  farthest  corners  men  were 
sitting  who  had  come  in  a  scoffing  mood,  or  out  of  curiosity,  to  hear 
the  evangelists,  the  preliminary  song  of  Mr.  Sankey  would  rouse 
the  attention  of  those  persons,  and  they  would  try  to  get  nearer  the 
platform,  and  by  the  time  Mr.  Moody  was  ready  to  speak,  they 
would  have  forgotten  why  they  had  come,  in  their  eagerness  to 
hear  the  preacher's  message. 

Mr.  Sankey's  singing  was  as  direct  in  its  appeal  to  the  in- 
dividual  as   Mr.     Moody's    speaking^.     Their  was  no   sentimental 


MOODY  AND  SAN  KEY 


137 


clap-trap  about  either,  in  spite  of  the  charge  which  we  have  fre- 
quently heard  to  that  effect  against  the  "  Gospel  hymns  ".  Music, 
of  all  the  arts,  is  now  in  the  highest  development.  John  Addington 
Symonds  in  his  story  of  the  Renaissance  tells  us  that  the  form  of 
art  in  which  any  given  generation  finds  the  most  perfect  expression 
for  its  ideals  of  beauty  depends  upon  the  nature  of  the  religious 
feeling  of  that  generation.  Thus,  the  mysticism  of  the  mediaeval 
Church  was  typified  in  the  symbolism,  the  lofty  aspiration  of 
Gothic  architecture  ;  the  rich  formalism,  the  sensuous  comprehen- 
siveness of  the  Church  of  Rome  in  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries  established  the  ideals  and  led  to  the  feelings  which  were 
spread  in  glowing  colors  upon  the  canvasses  of  the  greatest  painters 
the  world  has  ever  known  ;  while,  in  present  times,  the  develop- 
ment of  religious  life  to  a  plane  of  lofty  hope,  brotherly  love,  and 
a  consciousness   of  salvation  has  found   its   highest  expression  in 

music. 

A  Blessed  Partnership 

Music  comes  from  the  heart  in  a  way  that  words  cannot ;  there 
are  times  when  its  appeal  is  resistless,  and  so,  for  nearly  thirty 
years,  to  the  sound  sense  of  Mr.  Moody's  words,  illumined  as  they 
were  by  the  reflection  of  a  great  heart,  was  added  the  appeal  of 
Mr.  Sankey's  song.  Surely  this  partnership  was  blessed  beyond 
our  comprehension. 

It  has  been  wonderful  the  way  Mr.  Sankey's  song  has  been 
carried  beyond  the  mere  locality  of  utterance.  An  illustration  of 
the  way  in  which  it  heralded  and  accompanied  the  Gospel  message 
as  sent  out  from  the  words  of  his  brother  evangelist  is  found- in  the 
letter  of  a  traveler  who  was  going  from  England  to  France  in  1875. 
"  It  has  been  perfectly  delightful,"  he  says  "  to  find  traces  of  the 

work  everywhere.     While  waiting  at I  heard  a  porter  filling 

the  whole  station  with  the  '  Sweet  Bye  and  Bye.'      As  he  came  up  to 


138  MOODY  AND  SANKEY 

my  carriage,  I  was  struck  with  his  bright,  cheery  face  and  spoke  to 
him.      The  man's  face  glowed  when  he  talked  of  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr. 

Sankey.      *     *     *     Sunday  afternoon   at ,  I    was  alone   in 

the  reading  room  and  began  to  sing  to  myself  one  of  '  the  hymns  '. 
Presently  the  door  creaked,  and  on  looking  up  I  saw  that  a  whole 
bevy  of  maids  had  gathered  and  were  listening  attentively.  It  was 
so  unlike  what  foreign  servants  would  do,  I  felt  sure  that  they  must 
be  English,  and  I  knew  that  if  I  moved  they  would  run  away,  so  I 
sang  on  as  if  I  had  not  seen  them.  Then  an  old  gentleman  came 
in,  and  on  my  stopping,  said,  '  O  !  don't  stop,  but  please  sing 
'The  Home  Over  There'.  He  went  on  to  tell  that  he  had  been 
sitting  gloomily  in  his  room  when  he  heard  a  Sankey  hymn.  How 
one  is  taught  every  day  that  one's  '  times '  are  not  in  one's  own 
hands  !  I  wanted  to  sing  for  my  own  selfish  gratification  ;  but  I 
was  shamed  by  being  shown  how  it  might  be  used,  for  others  came 
in  after,  and  a  band  of  us  sang  '  Hold  the  Fort',  a  specially  neces- 
sary command  it  seems  when  traveling  abroad." 


CHAPTER  X. 

Evangelistic  Work  in  England,  Ireland  and 

Scotland 

WHEN  Mr.  Moody  arrived  at  Liverpool,  June  27,  1873,  he 
set  foot  upon  English  soil  for  the  third  time.  His  former 
trips  had  been  brief ;  now  he  had  come  with  a  determina- 
tion "to  win  ten  thousand  souls  for  Christ."  The  first  word 
received  on  landing  was  disappointing.  He  learned  that  the  two 
friends  who  had  invited  him  to  England,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Pennefather, 
rector  of  the  Mildmay  Park  Church,  in  London,  and  Mr.  Cuthbert 
Bainbridge,  an  eminent  Wesleyan  layman,  had  recently  died.  A 
third  invitation  had  been  given  by  Mr.  George  Bennett,  Secretary 
of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  in  York. 

The  Outlook   Not   Encouraging 

Mr.  Moody  telegraphed  to  Mr.  Bennett  announcing  his  arrival 
and  readiness  to  begin  work,  but  the  reply  stated  that  there  was  so 
little  religious  warmth  In  York  that  it  would  take  at  least  a  month 
to  get  ready  for  the  meetings.  Mr.  Moody,  however,  was  not 
afraid  of  the  prevalent  spiritual  frost.  He  telegraphed  to  his 
friend,  "  I  will  be  in  York  to-night,"  and  at  10  o'clock  In  the  even- 
ing arrived   In  that  city,  unheralded  and  unknown. 

The  outlook  was  not  encouraging,  but  Mr.  Moody  sent  for 
Mr.  Sankey,  who  had  gone  from  Liverpool  to  Manchester,  and  the 
meetings  began  at  once.  Only  eight  persons  attended  the  first 
meeting.       The  other    meetings   on    this    first  Sunday   betrayed   a 

139 


I40  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

somewhat  wider  interest,  but  durinor  the  followine  week  the  con- 
gregations  were  very  small  indeed.  The  second  week  was  marked 
by  some  improvement,  and  before  the  month  was  over,  in  spite  of 
the  coldness  manifested  by  the  ministers  of  the  place,  the  work 
had  made  a  considerable  impression.  The  inquiry  meetings  were  an 
innovation  in  English  services,  but  they  grew  in  favor  and  became 
more  and  more  an  important  instrument  of  spiritual  success. 
The  number  of  converts  at  York  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  two 
hundred.  The  work  closed  with  an  all-day  meeting,  beginning 
with  an  hour  for  conversation  and  prayer  and  continued  with  an 
hour  for  praise,  a  promise  meeting,  a  witness  meeting,  a  Bible 
lecture  by  Mr.  Moody,  and  finally  a  communion  service.  The 
meetings  were  chiefly  held  in  chapels,  the  evangelist  preferring 
not  to  go  to  public  halls  for  fear  of  seeming  to  neglect  the  iregu- 
larly  established  forms  of  worship. 

Sunderland 

After  attending  some  of  Mr.  Moody's  meetings  at  York,  the 
Rev.  Arthur  Rees,  a  liberal  Baptist  clergyman  of  Sunderland,, 
invited  the  American  evangelists  to  come  and  help  him  in  his 
work.  Accordingly  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  began  meetings 
in  Mr.  Rees'  chapel,  Sunday,  July  27th.  Here,  as  at  York,  coldness 
had  to  be  delt  with,  and  moreover  the  evangelists  had  been 
heralded  from  the  scene  of  their  first  labors  by  criticism  rather 
than  by  praise.  Still  from  the  first  large  congregations  attended 
the  meetings,  although  there  is  little  doubt  that  the  early  motive 
of  attendance  was  curiosity. 

Gradually  the  people  of  Sunderland  awoke.  In  order  to 
avoid  the  appearance  of  sectarianism,  Mr.  Moody  had  the  meet- 
ings removed  to  the  Victoria  Hall,  though  overflow  meetings  were 
generally  conducted  in  various  chapels. 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  141 

Even  after  the  power  of  the  Spirit  took  hold  of  the  people 
of  Sunderland,  ministerial  criticism  of  the  evanofelists'  course 
increased,  but  Mr.  Moody  was  not  without  friends.  None  of  the 
attacks  troubled  him  so  long  as  the  Holy  Spirit  was  manifested  in 
the  meetings  and  people  were  being  converted.  At  the  close  of 
the  month  the  results  were  not  what  he  had  hoped  for,  but  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  long  after  the  evangelists  had  left,  and 
when  news  of  the  ijreat  work  of  God  througfh  them  in  Scotland 
came  back  to  Sunderland,  the  city  was  stirred  profoundly,  and 
moved  to  genuine  revival  power. 

Newcastle 

By  invitation  of  the  Rev.  David  Lowe,  Mr.  Moody  went  from 
Sunderland  to  Newcastle-upon-Tyne,  spending  a  few  days  in 
Jarrow  on  the  way.  He  was  greeted  at  Newcastle  by  Mr.  Thomas 
Bainbridge,  a  brother  of  one  of  the  friends  who  had  invited  him 
to  Enofland. 

At  Newcastle  the  fire  was  kindled  which  was  to  mightily 
move  Great  Britain.  Ministerial  opposition  was  overcome,  five 
of  the  principal  chapels  of  the  town  being  offered  for  the  services. 
Mr.  Moody  accepted  the  use  of  the  Rye  Hill  Baptist  Chapel,  a 
large  edifice,  and  within  a  fortnight  crowds  were  turned  away  for 
want  of  room.  All  the  neighboring  towns  and  villages  felt 
the  spiritual  impulse,  and  in  response  to  requests  hundreds  of 
meetings  were  held  outside  the  city  by  multiplying  assistants  of 
the  evansfelist. 

Mr.  Moody,  in  order  to  prevent  the  exclusion  of  the  uncon- 
verted by  the  crowds  of  Christians  who  attended  the  meetings, 
now  began  to  divide  his  congregations  into  classes,  giving  tickets 
of  admission  to  the  various  services.  Meetings  for  merchants 
were  held  in  the  Assembly  Hall ;  meetings  for  mechanics  were  held 


142  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

at  the  Tyne  Theatre,  and  in  each  instance  the  size  of  the  crowds 
usually  necessitated  three  or  four  overflow  meetings. 

The  name  and  residence  of  every  inquirer  was  made  a  matter  of 
record,  and  in  order  that  assistants  in  the  inquiry  room  should  be  more 
fitted  to  the  purpose,  tickets  were  issued  to  clergymen  and  other  men 
of  practical  experience  in  Christian  work,  that  they  might  help  in 
the  ereat  work  of  leadingr  souls  to  Christ.  At  first  most  of  the  con- 
versions  were  among  the  educated  classes,  but  afterward  the  work 
became  more  general.  The  noon  prayer  meetings  which  had  been 
commenced  previous  to  the  arrival  of  Mr.  Moody,  by  way  of  pre- 
paration, had  grown  to  remarkable  proportions,  while  Mr.  Moody's 
afternoon  Bible  readings  drew  even  from  the  ranks  of  busy 
merchants  and  professional  men.  Two  whole-day  meetings  or 
conferences  were  held.  During  the  last  week  of  the  meetings,  the 
Jubilee  Singers  began  their  connection  with  the  work. 

As  a  result  of  this  month's  work,  hundreds  of  converts  were 
received  into  the  churches,  and  the  whole  North  of  England  was 
aroused.  Scores  of  Christian  workers  were  sent  out  to  carry  the 
good  tidings  to  the  remoter  districts,  and  the  stimulus  to  the 
various  churches  proved  unprecedented.  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr. 
Sankey  now  moved  toward  Scotland,  holding  on  the  way  brief, 
though  successful,  series  of  meetings  in  a  number  of  small  cities. 

Edinburgh. 

To  understand  the  influence  of  the  labors  of  Mr.  Moody  and 
Mr.  Sankey  in  Scotland,  it  is  important  to  know  something  of  the 
rise  and  progress  of  her  Christian  character.  This  takes  us  back  to 
the  Reformation,  to  the  Christian  organization  of  John  Knox.  In 
all  subsequent  struggles  Scotland  realized  that  the  work  of  the 
Reformers  had  had  much  to  do  in  fostering  the  zeal  and  spiritual 
independence    for   which    her    people   were    ever    distinguished. 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  143 

Down  to  the  close  of  the  last  century  the  light  of  the  Reformation 
shone  clearly,  but  an  eclipse  came,  and  it  was  not  until  the  appear- 
ance of  the  brothers  James  and  Robert  Haldane  that  the  sun 
again  burst  forth.  These  men,  with  Mr.  Simeon,  an  evangelical 
clergyman  of  Cambridge,  were  Scotland's  first  great  evangelists. 
In  ten  years  they  established  more  than  one  hundred  independent 
churches,  providing  also  for  the  training  of  ministers.  The  next 
era  was  the  disruption  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  in  1843.  This, 
strangely  enough,  proved  to  be  the  beginning  of  Christian  union, 
for  non-conformist  brethren  offered  to  the  ministers  who  had  given 
up  their  livings  and  entered  the  Free  Church  of  Scotland  the  use 
of  their  churches  for  half  of  every  Sunday.  Thenceforward  there 
was  one  body  in  Christian  work. 

Mr.  Moody's  meetings  commenced  late  in  November  in  the 
Free  Church  Assembly  Hall.  From  the  first  no  place  in  Edin- 
burgh could  contain  the  crowds.  Three  or  four  of  the  largest 
halls  and  churches  were  constantly  in  use,  and  even  then  it  was 
necessary  to  come  to  the  place  of  meeting  an  hour  or  two  before 
the  appointed  time  in  order  to  be  sure  of  admittance.  The  con- 
verts were  numbered  by  thousands.  The  awakening  among  the 
nominal  church  members  could  hardly  be  described.  As  an  ex- 
ample of  the  thoroughness  of  the  work  it  is  stated  that  at  one 
meeting,  composed  of  sixty-six  young  men,  sixty  were  converted 
before  they  left  the  place. 

The  watch-night  meeting,  which  closed  the  year  1873,  was 
perhaps  the  most  remarkable  service  that  had  ever  been  held  in 
Edinburgh.  For  five  full  hours  a  great  audience,  many  of  them 
obliged  to  stand,  praised  God  and  gave  their  testimony  to  the 
work  of  His  saving  grace  in  them.  The  Christian  Conference 
on  January  4th  was    attended    by    about    150   ministers;   such    a 


144  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

meeting  had  never  been  seen  in  Edinburgh  before.  The  fare- 
well meeting  was  held  in  the  fields  on  the  slope  of  Arthur's 
Seat,  there  being  no  building  which  could  accommodate  the  multi- 
tudes who  wished  to  join  in  the  last  service  of  their  brethren  from 
America.  As  a  result  of  the  work  in  Edinburgh  fully  3,000  per- 
sons were  received  into  the  churches. 

The  Work   in  Scotland  Continued. 

From  Edinburgh  Mr.  Moody  went  to  Dundee,  January  21st, 
and  for  several  weeks  the  visitations  with  which  the  Holy  Spirit 
had  blessed  other  cities  came  to  this  old  stronghold  of  Scottish 
faith. 

The  meetings  began  at  Glasgow  on  February  8th.  Three  thou- 
sand Sunday-school  teachers  surrounded  the  evangelists  in  the  City 
Hall  at  the  first  meeting.  An  hour  before  the  time  for  the  ser- 
vices such  a  crowd  had  assembled  that  four  large  churches  in  the 
neighborhood  were  filled  by  the  overflow.  Mr.  Moody  had  been 
in  Glasgow  in  1872,  when  he  had  attracted  no  attention  ;  now  from 
the  start  the  revival  work  exhibited  a  power  almost  unparalleled. 
The  Glasgow  noon  prayer  meeting  had  been  commenced  during 
the  week  of  prayer  for  Scotland,  which  was  held  in  Edinburgh  a 
month  before  the  evangelists  went  to  Glasgow.  This  preparation 
was  not  in  vain. 

At  first,  church-going  people  were  affected.  Then  the  hand 
of  God  touched  the  great  masses  of  the  population  who  were 
without  the  fold.  Meetings  were  held  in  the  streets  and  squares 
of  the  city  ;  fathers  and  mothers  met  to  pray  for  the  conversion  of 
their  children  ;  children's  meetings  were  also  held.  The  great  con- 
ference of  Christian  workers  at  the  Kibble  Crystal  Palace  in  the 
Botanic  Gardens,  April  16,  renewed  the  vigor  of  all  departments 
of  home  missionary  work  in  Scotland. 


friend,Tn  ?8?J    Thif  °°Po  Jr7p?:lTi'b7o:,';T'"''"S  T^^^^t'^  1°  '^■'"  ^^  I^-  English 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  147 

The  last  meetings  were  the  greatest  of  all.  Going  to  the 
evening  service  the  carriage  of  Mr.  Moody  was  almost  blocked  by 
the  dense  throngs  which  surrounded  the  Crystal  Palace,  and,  seeing 
the  multitudes,  the  evangelist  determined  to  preach  from  the 
carriage,  as  there  were  more  without  the  building  than  within. 
Those  inside  the  palace,  learning  of  the  change  of  program,  im- 
mediately joined  the  throng  outside,  and  the  service  which  followed 
was  one  of  wonderful  effect.  At  the  close  of  the  discourse,  Mr. 
Moody  invited  inquirers  to  meet  him  at  the  palace,  and  this 
great  audience  hall  was  filled.  Large  numbers  gave  themselves  to 
Christ.  It  was  at  Glasgow  that  Henry  Drummond  was  drawn  to 
this  o^reat  evangelistic  movement. 

While  in  Glasgow  the  evangelists  made  several  brief  excur- 
sions to  neighboring  cities. 

The  Tour  in  the  North 

About  the  middle  of  May,  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey,  after 
a  three  days'  visit  to  Edinburgh,  went  northward  through  Scotland, 
stopping  in  Perth,  Montrose,  Aberdeen,  Inverness,  and  in  some 
other  towns.  To  the  very  end  of  Scotland,  to  John'-o'-Groat's 
house,  the  evangelists  went,  meeting  crowds  of  people  at  every 
stopping  place,  and  holding  service  after  service,  generally  in  the 
open  air.  At  Aberdeen  12,000  to  20,000  people  attended  the  out- 
door services  ;  at  Inverness  the  meetings  were  held  at  the  time  of 
the  annual  wool  fair,  and  many  were  reached  who  had  been  spend- 
ing their  lives  beyond  the  reach  of  the  churches.  On  returning 
from  the  north,  farewell  meetings  were  held  in  some  of  the  places 
where  the  evangelists  had  labored. 

The  Evangelists  go  to  Ireland 
Mr.    Moody  and   Mr.    Sankey  had    received  invitations  from 
many  different  quarters,  and  they  now  decided  prayerfully  that  the 


148  EVANGELISTIC  WORIT  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

greatest  opportunity  before  them  lay  in  Ireland.  Accordingly  they 
bade  good-bye  to  Scotland,  and  on  September  6th,  held  the  first  meet- 
ing in  Belfast,  at  Dougal  Square  Chapel.  The  second  meeting 
was  held  in  a  larger  church,  while  the  evening  meeting  was  ad- 
journed to  a  still  larger  place  of  worship,  with  seating  capacity  for 
about  two  thousand  persons,  which  was  only  about  one-quarter 
of  those  who  tried  to  gain  admission.  In  fact,  in  Ireland  the  at- 
tendance upon  the  meetings  was  but  a  repetition  of  the  crowded 
following  which  had  sought  to  come  under  the  spell  of  the  Ameri- 
can workers  in  Scotland.  On  Monday  a  noon  prayer  meeting  was 
commenced,  and  that,  too,  had  to  be  adjourned  to  a  larger  building, 
r  It  became  necessary  here,  as  in  Scotland,  to  divide  the  audiences, 
I  so  that  men's  meetings,  women's  meetings  etc.,  etc.,  were  held. 
\  There  were  several  great  open  air  meetings.  On  one  occasion  two 
hundred  young  men  gave  themselves  to  Christ. 

The  evangelists  had  been  invited  to  Londonderry  by  a  com- 
mittee of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  and  there  they 
went  for  four  days,  beginning  October  nth,  holding  a  number  of 
notable  meetings,  and  returning  to  Belfast  on  the  15th,  to  hold 
their  farewell  services  there.  The  final  inquiry  meeting  at  Belfast 
was  attended  by  about  2,400  persons,  admitted  by  ticket ;  2, 150  con- 
verts' tickets  were  given  before  the  close  of  the  evening  service. 

Dublin. 

The  difficulty  of  finding  a  place  large  enough  for  the  meetings 
had  led  Mr.  Moody  to  name  to  the  brethren  at  Dublin,  as  a  condi- 
tion of  his  coming,  the  engagement  of  the  Exhibition  Palace.  This 
condition  was  met ;  the  Palace  was  engaged,  and  on  October  24th, 
Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  arrived  in  the  Irish  capital. 

There  were  in  Dublin  only  about  40,000  Protestants,  out 
of    a    population    of   250,000,    but    the    denominational    line    was 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  149 

frequently  crossed  by  the  work  of  the  evangelists.  Indeed, 
so  deep  was  the  encroachment  of  the  revival  upon  the  Roman 
Catholic  population,  that  Cardinal  Cullen  felt  himself  called 
upon  to  interdict  the  attendance  of  his  flock  upon  the  Pro- 
testant meetings.  In  spite  of  this,  many  Roman  Catholics  were 
converted.  Mr.  Moody  was  unable  to  see  why  the  line  be- 
tween Roman  Catholicism  and  Protestantism  should  be  observed 
in  his  work  any  more  than  the  lines  between  different  Protestant 
denominations.  The  fact  that  a  man  had  a  soul  to  save  was  a 
sufficient  call  to  enlist  his  energies. 

At  Dublin,  the  Bible  readings  were,  perhaps,  valued  more  than 
any  other  of  the  services.  One  unique  meeting  was  held  for  the 
soldiers  of  the  garrison  of  Curragh,  who  attended  in  large  numbers 
and  were  won  by  the  stories  and  the  earnest  logic  of  the  speaker. 
An  organized  society  of  Atheists  tried  their  hand  at  opposing  Mr. 
Moody  by  introducing  their  members  into  the  inquiry  meetings, 
but  the  scheme  was  discovered,  and  the  intruders  were  not  allowed 
to  enter  into  debate  or  useless  conversation. 

The  thoroughness  with  which  the  hearts  of  the  Irish  people 
were  touched  was  evidenced  by  their  liberality  in  providing  funds  to 
meet  the  expenses  of  the  meetings.     ^1,500  were    required,    and 
5,000   or  6,000  of  the  leading  citizens   of  Dublin  were  invited  by 
circular  to  contribute.     There   were    only   two    instances    of    per- 
sonal solicitation,  but    the  money  came  in  so  rapidly  that   it   was 
difficult   to  keep    track    of  it.     Mr.    Moody   and   Mr.    Sankey  did  ; 
not  work  for  pay  ;  they  took  whatever  the  Committees  on  Finance  \ 
in  the  various  cities  where  they  were  conducting  services  regarded  < 
as  a  suitable  remuneration, — this  in  spite  of  the  inevitable  criticism 
made  by  opponents  of  the  movement  that  the  evangelists  were  "  in 
the  business  for  the  money  they  could  get  out  of  it ". 


ISO  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

Dublin  was  merely  the  center  of  the  revival  interest.  All  over 
Ireland  the  spell  was  so  powerful,  that  the  mere  announcement  in  a 
village  that  some  man  who  had  been  to  the  Dublin  services  would 
tell  what  he  had  seen  there,  was  sufficient  to  draw  a  orgeat  crowd. 
The  meetings  closed  on  November  29th,  after  a  conference  of  three 
days,  which  was  attended  by  about  800  ministers.  The  meeting  for 
converts  on  the  second  day  of  the  conference  called  together  about 
2,000  persons.  When  their  labors  ended,  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr. 
Sankey  went  once  more  to  England,  this  time  not  unheralded. 

In  Ireland,  as  in  Scotland,  the  spirit  which  they  had  aroused 
continued  to  manifest  itself  in  many  increasing  results. 

The   Evangelists  Return  to  England 
The  first  meetings  of  the  new  campaign  in  England,  were  held 
at  Manchester.      Within  a  week  it  was  said,    "  Manchester  is  now 
on  fire."     The  services  here  were  not  marked  so  much  by  that  joy- 
ful spirit  which  had  characterized  the  evangelism  of  Scotland  and 
1  Ireland,  as  by  a  solemn  earnestness,  and  the  influence  of  the  meet- 
ings proper  was  extended  in  a  great  many  practical  ways  throughout 
/  the  city  and  its  environs. 

An  important  result  in  Manchester  was  the  impulse  given  by 
Mr.  Moody  to  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  movement. 
He  held  one  meeting  after  which  a  large  collection  was  given 
toward  a  new  building  for  the  Association,  and  this  sum  proved  the 
nucleus  of  more  than  ^30,000  which  was  ultimately  raised  for  the 
purpose.  Nearly  500  names  were  added  to  the  roll  of  active  mem- 
bers of  the  Association. 

Sheffield    and  Birmingham 
Meetings   were  held   in  Sheffield,  beginning   on   the   night  of 
December  31,  1874.      It  was  not  easy  to  arouse  the  unimpressible 
metal  workers  of  Sheffield,  and  at  first  considerable  disappointment 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  15 f 

was  felt  in  the  results  of  the  services,  but  it  was  not  long-  before  the 
power  of  the  evangelists'  message  became  manifest. 

Leaving  Sheffield  thoroughly  awakened,  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr. 
Sankey  went  to  Birmingham  where  their  meetings  began  on  Janu- 
ary I  7th,  being  held  in  the  great  Town  Hall  with  its  seating  capacity 
for  5,000  persons.  In  the  evening  the  services  were  held  in  Bing- 
ley  Hall,  a  great  enclosed  area  which  was  customarily  engaged  for 
the  annual  cattle  show.  In  spite  of  its  accommodations  for  10,000 
or  I  2,000  persons,  the  immense  building  was  thronged  every  even- 
ing, an  hour  before  the  time  of  service.  The  conference  with 
which  the  Birmingham  meetings  closed  was  attended  by  minis- 
ters from  all  parts  of  Great  Britain.  After  the  departure  of  the 
"brethren  from  America",  the  work  of  grace  continued  just  as  it 
had  in  every  city  which  they  had  visited. 

LlVERPOQL. 

Mr.  Moody  came  to  Liverpool  as  an   old  friend.      As  the  city  / 
contained  no  hall  large  enough  for  his  purposes,  an   immense  tern-  1 
porary  structure,  called   the  Victoria    Hall,  had   been    erected.      It  ( 
held  about   10,000  persons,  and  the  expense  of  building  it  was  met 
by  voluntary  contributions,  no  direct  solicitation  being  made.    This  / 
was  the  first  hall  erected  during  the  campaign  especially  for  revival 
services.      At    the    first    meeting    two-thirds    of    the   congfreo-ation  I 
were  young  men.      The   noon    prayer   meeting  was  sometimes  at-  1 
tended   by   5,000  or  6,000  persons.      Eighteen  services  were  held 
each  week  in  the  Victoria  Hall,  and  the  Gospel  was  also   carried 
into  the  streets  and  byways,  and  missionary   services  were  held  in 
warerooms  and  in  stables,  as  well  as  in  the  open. 

It    was    during     one    of    the    Liverpool    meetings,    that    Mr. 
Moody  gave  a  remarkable  exhibition  of  his  organizing  abilities.     A 
great    meeting  was    being  held  and   the  theme  for  discussion  was, 
9 


152  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

"How  to  reach  the  Masses".  One  of  the  speakers  expressed  the 
opinion  that  the  chief  want  of  the  masses  in  Liverpool  was  the 
institution  of  cheap  houses  of  refreshment  to  counteract  the 
saloons.  When  he  had  finished,  Mr.  Moody  asked  him  to  continue 
speaking  for  ten  minutes  longer,  and  no  sooner  was  this  time  up 
when  Mr.  Moody  sprang  to  his  feet  and  announced  that  a  company 

I   had  been  formed  to  carry  out  the  objects  the  speaker  had  advocated  ; 

I  that  various  gentlemen  had  taken  i,ooo  shares  of  £\  each,  and 
that  the  subscription  lists  would  be  open  until  the  end  of  the 
meeting.  The  capital  was  gathered  before  adjournment,  and  the 
company  \vas  soon  floated,  being  known  as  "  The  British  Work- 
men Company,  Limited".  It  has  not  only  worked  a  revolution  in 
Liverpool,  but  has  paid  a  handsome  dividend  as  well. 

During  the  month  at  Liverpool,  the  number  of  persons  con- 
verted, or  awakened,  ran  into  the  thousands.  The  inquiry  rooms 
were  invariably  crowded. 

The   London   Revival. 

"If  I  come  to  London,"  Mr.  Moody  had  said,  "you  will  need 
to  raise  ^5,000  for  expenses  of  halls,  advertising,  etc."  "  We  have 
;^io,ooo  already,"  was  the  reply.  This  shows  the  spirit  in  which 
the  efforts  of  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  in  the  Metropolis  of  the 
world  were  anticipated.  The  work  of  preparation  had  been  carried 
on  by  able  committees.  Preliminary  daily  prayer  meetings  were 
crowded, 

,  It  was  decided  to  attack  the  city  in  the  four  quarters.  The 
meetings  began  in  the  north  and  were  held  in  the  great  Agricul- 
tural Hall.  The  congregations  in  this  immense  structure  averaged 
during  the  first  week  about  18,000  persons,  but  it  was  impossible 
to  make  so  large  a  number  hear  the  preaching,  and  the  size  was 
reduced,  by  means  of  temporary  partitions,  to  the  capacity  of  about 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  153 

14,000,  and  even  then  it  was  constantly  overcrowded.  The  inquiry 
meetings  were  held  in  St.  Mary's  Hall,  but  so  great  was  the  curious 
crowd,  which  blocked  the  adjacent  streets,  that  it  was  found 
advisable  to  remove  these  meetings  to  one  of  the  galleries  of  the 
Aofricultural  Hall  itself. 

The  services  were  managed  by  a  committee,  with  the  assist- 
ance of  seventy  or  eighty  ushers.  Interest  increased  weekly. 
Sometimes  400  or  500  persons  at  one  time  would  be  conversing 
in  the  inquirers'  galleries  about  the  salvation  of  their  souls.  As  in 
other  places,  the  work  began  with  the  better  classes,  and  was  after- 
ward extended  to  the  slums. 

The  campaign  in  the  East  End,  which  began  five  weeks  after 
the  meetings  in  the  North  End,  centered  in  Bow  Road  Hall,  built 
especially  for  the  services,  and  designed  to  hold  an  audience  of 
10,000  persons.  Overflow  meetings  were  held  in  a  large  tent  near 
the  buildinof. 

In  the  West  End  the  services  were  held  in  the  Royal  Opera 
House,  where  many  thousands  thronged  the  three  or  four  different 
meetings  which  were  held  each  day.  For  several  weeks  Mr.  Moody 
divided  his  attention  between  the  Opera  House  and  the  Bow  Road 
Hall. 

It  was  at  this  time  that  the  controversy  arose  regarding  the 
meetings  at  Eton.      The  patrons  of   the  famous  college  which  is 
situated   in   that   little  town,  did  not  wish  their  sons  subjected  to  \ 
irregular  religious  influence,  and  the  matter  was  even  taken  up  by   ; 
the  House  of  Lords.     The  evangelists  had  been  invited  by  a  large  I 
majority  of  the  students  in  the  college,  but  pressure  in  high  quarters  \ 
made  it  inadvisable  to  accept  the  invitation   in  its   full  intent.      A 
meeting  was  held  in  the  private  grounds  of   a  gentleman  at  Eton, 
and  there  Mr.  Moody  preached  to  about  two  hundred  of  the  college 
boys,  and  two  or  three  times  as  many  citizens  of  the  town. 


154  ^  VANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC. 

In  conducting  the  meetings  in  South  London,  a  new  hall, 
erected  for  them  near  Camberwell  Green,  was  occupied  by  the 
evangelists.  This  structure  seated  about  8,000  persons.  Here 
the  chief  interest  centered  in  the  inquiry  room,  where  the 
spirit  was  as  earnest  and  as  deep  as  it  had  been  in  the  other  quarters 
of  the  city.  When  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  discontinued 
services  in  one  of  the  four  quarters  of  the  city,  the  meetings  were 
continued  by  others,  and  the  fire  v/hich  God  had  permitted  the  two 
evanofelists  to  kindle  was  not  suffered  to  die  out.  The  final  service 
was  held  July  12th,  the  evangelists  having  conducted  285  meetings 
in  London,  and  having  addressed  fully  2,500,000  persons.  Mr. 
Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  hastily  withdrew  at  the  conclusion  of  this 
last  service,  rather  than  face  the  ordeal  of  parting  with  so  many 
dear  friends.     This  was  ever  Mr.  Moody's  custom. 

The  last  meeting  in  England  was  held  in  Liverpool,  and  on 
October  6th,  attended  by  many  loving  prayers,  Mr.  Moody  and 
Mr.  Sankey  set  sail  toward  the  West,  arriving  in  New  York  eight 
days  later. 

Can  We  Measure  the  Results? 

Lecky,  the  historian,  calmly  and  dispassionately  asserts  that 
the  evangelistic  labors  of  John  Wesley  and  his  co-workers,  by  lift- 
ing the  moral  tone  of  the  common  people,  saved  England  from  a 
revolution.  Mr.  Moody  may  not  have  served  as  an  instrument  for 
the  accomplishment  of  so  deep  an  economic  purpose,  but  it  is 
certain  that  the  regenerating  springs  of  spiritual  life,  which  God 
used  him  to  draw  from  the  rock  of  indifference,  refreshed  and 
revived  a  people  fast  tending  to  religious  numbness.  And  nothing 
is  so  dangerous  as  this  apathetic  numbness ;  it  has  done  more  to 
hinder  the  progress  of  salvation  than  all  the  active  forces  of  the 
devil  put  together. 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  ENGLAND,  ETC.  157 

I  am  not  prepared  to  deny  that  many  who  were   awakened  or 
converted  during  Mr.  Moody's  labors  in   Great   Britain  went  back 
to   their  former   walks   soon  after  the   immediate  presence  of   the 
evangelists  ceased  to   be    felt ;   nor  will    I    deny  that  much  of  the 
work    inspired    by    his    efforts  crystallized  into    conventional    and 
narrow  forms  ;  but  I  believe  from  the  bottom  of  my  heart  that  the 
movement  blessed  Britain  as  she   had   not   before   been  blessed  for  >. 
one  hundred  years,  and  I  know  that  tens  of  thousands  of  persons  \ 
became  better  men  and  women  for  the  effect  of  Mr.  Moody's  words  / 
upon  them.      Through  this  man   God  led  men  to  read  their  Bibles,  1 
to  live  honestly,  to   rid   themselves   of  besetting  sins,  and  to  place 
their  faith  in  Christ  as  a  personal  Saviour. 


CHAPTER  XL 

Evangelistic  Work  in  the  United  States. 

ON  his  return  from  Great  Britain,  Mr.  Moody  went  to  North- 
field,  there  to  spend  some  Httle  time  resting  at  his  old 
home  and  enjoying  the  companionship  of  his  relatives. 
It  will  be  readily  understood  that  although  he  had  gone  from  the 
United  States  two  years  before  known  to  very  few,  the  wonderful 
results  of  his  labors  in  Great  Britain  had  made  his  name  a  house- 
hold word,  and  his  fellow-countrymen  awaited  his  active  work  in 
this  country  not  only  with  curiosity  (which  it  must  be  admitted  was 
felt  by  a  large  body  of  unbelievers  and  indifferent  ones)  but  also, 
many  of  them,  with  a  deep  conviction  that  the  Lord  had  raised 
him  up  to  lead  the  people  in  a  great  religious  awakening. 

Gospel  Camtaign  in  Brooklyn 

The  Gospel  campaign  in  the  United  States  began  at 
Brooklyn,  on  Sunday,  October  24,  1875.  The  skating  rink  on 
Clarmont  Avenue,  with  its  seating  capacity  of  six  thousand,  was 
secured  for  the  use  of  the  services.  Preliminary  work  had  been  con- 
ducted in  Brooklyn  according  to  the  system  which  Mr.  Moody 
invariably  insisted  upon,  so  that  when  he  took  up  the  work  in 
person,  almost  everything  was  already  in  full  swing.  A  chorus  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  voices  had  been  organized  to  lead  the  music. 
Interest  accumulated  with  the  progress  of  the  services,  and  the 
size  of  the  audiences  uniformly  increased.  Nothing  in  secular 
affairs  seemed  capable  of  drawing  off  the  public  attention,  not 
1^.8 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  159 

even  an  exciting  election,  with  its  public  meetings  and  torchlight 
processions.  The  very  first  meetings  brought  together  enormous 
crowds.  These  audiences,  it  was  surmised,  might  have  been 
attracted  by  curiosity  ;  but  the  novelty  soon  wore  off,  and  yet  the 
weekday  meetings  at  8  a.m.  and  7.30  p.m.,  overflowed  and  had  to 
be  accommodated  in  neighboring  churches.  The  "  overflow " 
meetings  continued  as  a  feature  of  the  work  until  the  last.  In  the 
second  week,  a  woman's  prayer  meeting  followed  the  morning 
service,  and  a  Bible  reading  was  held  in  the  afternoon,  beside  the 
regular  evening  meeting.  These  additional  gatherings  were  almost 
as  largely  attended  as  the  others.  To  all  of  these  was  added  a 
young  men's  meeting  held  at  night  after  the  evening  service  to 
accommodate  the  clerks  and  other  persons  detained  by  business 
during  the  earlier  hours,  and  inquiry  meetings  were  also  held  in 
the  adjoining  churches.  Still  there  was  no  falling  off  in  the  crowds 
who  could  not  find  even  standing  room. 

Different  Appearance  of  the  Audiences 

It  is  difficult  to  estimate  the  numbers  who  attended  during 
the  meetings.  Counting  in  the  overflow  meetings  the  audiences 
must  have  included,  especially  toward  the  last,  from  fifteen  thou- 
sand to  twenty  thousand  per  day.  Perhaps  a  higher  estimate 
would  be  nearer  the  fact.  As  in  Great  Britain,  different  expedients 
were  employed  to  change  the  class  attendance, — expedients  which 
would  have  been  fatal  to  a  less  absorbing  interest.  To  many  of 
the  meetings  in  the  Rink  church-goers  were  not  invited ;  indeed 
they  were  asked  to  stay  away,  and  admission  was  procurable  only 
on  the  statement  that  a  ticket  was  to  be  used  by  some  unconverted 
person.  The  different  appearance  of  the  audiences  on  successive 
nights  was  fair  evidence  that  they  were  not  composed  of  the  same 
people. 


i6o  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

The  effect  of  the  Brooklyn  meetings  was  an  awakening  rather 
than  a  great  conversion  of  non-church-goers,  and  prepared  the 
churches  for  greater  activity.  As  in  England,  the  first  work  of  the 
evangelists  fell  somewhat  short  of  that  which  was  to  follow.  No 
attempt  was  made  to  record  the  number  of  conversions,  although 
they  were  by  no  means  few.  A  feature  of  the  work  was  the  hearty 
and  undivided  support  of  the  churches ;  at  one  prayer  meeting 
nearly  one  hundred  ministers  were  present. 

During  these  meetings  Mr.  Moody  sounded  he  keynote  of  his 
theory,  if  such  it  may  be  called,  of  bringing  about  a  great  religious 
awakening.  He  said  to  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  "There  is  no  use 
attempting  to  make  a  deep  and  lasting  effect  on  masses  of  people, 
but  every  effort  should  be  put  forth  on  the  individual." 

The  meetings  closed  November  19th.     At  the  final  service  the 

building  was  crowded   almost  beyond  its  limit,  while   the    streets 

were  filled  with  thousands  of  persons  who  v/ere  disappointed  in  their 

endeavor  to  get  in. 

Campaign  in  Philadelphia 

From  Brooklyn  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  went  to  Philadel- 
phia and  began  their  meetings  in  the  old  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
depot  at  Thirteenth  and  Market  Streets,  now  occupied  by  Mr.  John 
Wanamaker  as  a  great  mercantile  establishment. 

The  depot  was  situated  in  a  dull  and  uninviting  neighborhood, 
comparatively  deserted  by  night,  and  not  very  well  lighted,  and 
when  the  suggestion  was  made  that  the  property  might  be  tempo- 
rarily renovated  for  an  auditorium  until  the  railroad  company  should 
find  a  purchaser  for  it,  there  was  considerable  derision ;  but  President 
Scott,  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  had  a  hearty  and  large  way  of 
doing  things,  and  he  told  the  men  who  were  giving  their  interest  to 
the  proposed  meetings,  that  they  could  have  the  use  of  the  property 
at  the  rate  of  .one  dollar  per  year,  provided  they  were  ready  to  get 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  i6i 

out  at  a  month's  notice  when  the  company  should  effect  a  sale.  It 
happened,  however,  that  just  about  this  time  a  Philadelphia  mer- 
chant, Mr.  Wanamaker,  was  laying  plans  to  develop  his  busi- 
ness on  a  broader  scale.  He  made  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad 
Company  an  offer  for  the  old  depot,  and  became  its  purchaser  ;  but, 
before  proceeding  to  occupy  it,  he  consented  that  the  interior 
should  be  reconstructed  temporarily  for  the  revival  services,  of 
which  he  had  been  one  of  the  chief  projectors. 

Preparatory   Arrangements 

About  forty  thousand  dollars  was  spent  in  reconstruction  and 
equipment  of  the  building.  Chairs  were  provided  for  about  ten 
thousand  persons,  which  leaves  out  of  count  the  space  upon  the 
platform  occupied  by  a  chorus  of  six  hundred  singers.  The 
expenses  were  met  by  voluntary  contributions.  Three  hundred 
Christians  were  chosen  to  act  as  ushers  while  a  like  number  of 
workers  were  selected  to  serve  in  the  three  inquiry  rooms.  The 
original  intention  had  been  to  engage  the  Academy  of  Music,  but 
this  was  overruled  in  favor  of  the  depot,  largely  because  of  the 
suggestion  that  the  novelty  of  such  an  auditorium  would  alone 
draw  thousands  of  people. 

The  first  day  it  rained  ;  moreover  the  burning  of  Market  Street 
bridge,  the  night  before,  had  stopped  the  streetcars  running  on 
the  chief  thoroughfare  to  the  place  of  meeting.  Still  the  great 
improvised  tabernacle  was  filled  by  an  audience  of  10,000.  In 
Philadelphia,  as  elsewhere,  Mr.  Moody  began  by  seeking  to  arouse 
the  Christians  to  a  sense  of  their  responsibility.  On  one  occasion, 
he  spoke  of  the  "  dumb  people  in  the  churches  who  had  said 
nothing  for  Christ  for  ten  or  fifteen  years ",  and  of  the  "  dwarfs 
who  had  not  grown  since  they  were  converted  ".  On  the  second 
evening,   a  young    men's  meeting   was   conducted   in   Arch   Street 


r62  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

Methodist  Church,  by  Mr.  John  Wanamaker.  With  a  few  excep- 
tions the  clergy  of  the  city  took  hearty  interest  in  all  the  services. 
Many  of  them,  whose  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Moody's  methods  was 
based  entirely  upon  vague  report,  had  looked  forward  with  dread 
I  of  sensational  methods,  but  the  quiet  yet  thorough  way  in  which 
I   Mr.  Moody   entered   upon   his  work   brought  to   these  doubters  a 

•  feeling  of  gratified  disappointment.  On  November  26th,  the  morning 
prayer  meeting  had  an  attendance  of  8,000.  A  Methodist  minister 
said,  "If  we  had  a  hundred  Moodys  and  Sankeys  in  the  country  all 
the  Protestant  sects  would  unite  within  ten  years." 

Vx\RiETY  OF  Subjects  Discussed 

The  last  evening  service  of  the  eighth  week  was  attended  by 
more  than  13,000,  while  many  thousands  were  turned  away.  The 
regular  meetings  ended  January  i6th.  However,  a  convention  for 
clergymen  and  Christian  laymen  was  held  January  19th  and  20th  ; 
these  developed  more  especially  into  services  of  praise.  At  the  first 
meeting  of  the  convention  about  1,000  ministers  and  lay  delegates 
were  present.  Mr.  Moody  spoke  first  on  "  Evangelistic  Services  ". 
This  was  followed  by  "  How  to  Conduct  Prayer  meetings"  ;  "  In- 
'Tnquiry  Meetings — Their  Importance  and  Conduct  ",  and  "The 
Training  of  Young  Converts  and  Lay  Workers  ".  On  the  follow- 
ing day  the  subjects  discussed  were,  "  How  Should  the  Music  be 
Conducted  in  the  Lord's  Work  ?  "  "  How  to  Expound  and  Illus- 
trate the  Scriptures  "  ;  "  How  to  Get  Hold  of  Non-Church-Goers  "  ; 
and  "  Our  Young  Men — What  More  can  We  Do  for  Them  ?  "  In 
the   evening,    Mr.  Moody  spoke    on    "  Daniel  ".      I    mention    these 

•  subjects  to  give  an  idea  of  the  variety  of  thought  which  made  the 
convention  so  helpful.      Mr.  Moody  said  that  in  all  his  experience 

:    thus  far  he  had  never  seen  such   services  as  these  in  Philadelphia, 
i     For   fifty    mile^    around   the   city    the    country    sent   recruits,   and 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  163 

the  total  attendance  durinir  the  nine  weeks  was  estimated  at 
about  900,000,  As  a  thank-offering  a  large  sum  was  raised, 
amounting  to  about  $127,000.  The  total  expenses  of  the  meetings 
were  in  the  neighborhood  of  $30,000.  After  the  evangelists  had 
departed  chairs  and  other  articles  which  had  been  in  use  at  the 
depot  were  sold  at  auction  ;  the  chair  in  which  Mr.  Moody  had  sat  / 
brough  $55,  as  did  also  M.  Sankey's  chair.  The  principal  employ-  ' 
ment  of  the  great  thank-offering  collection  was  to  help  the  Philadel- 
phia Young  Men's  Christian  Association  complete  its  new  building 
in  time  for  the  Centennial  Exposition,  which  began  the  same  year. 
The  meetings  in  Philadelphia  established  Mr.  Moody's  leader- 
ship of  the  Lord's  active  army  in  the  United  States.  His  clarion 
note  had  no  uncertain  sound. 

The  Great  Campaign  in   New  York 

After  leaving  Philadelphia  Mr.  Moody  took  his  family  to 
Florida  and  rested  for  a  time  before  entering  on  the  great  campaign 
in  New  York.  But  preparations  in  the  metropolis  were  busily 
going  on.  Gilmore's  Concert  Garden,  which  had  formerly  been 
known  as  Barnum's  Hippodrome,  was  rented  for  the  services, 
$1,300  being  paid  weekly  for  its  use. 

The  meetings  in  the  Hippodrome  began  February  7,  1876,  at 
8  p.  M.  More  than  $15,000  had  been  expended  on  the  building 
to  make  it  completely  serviceable.  The  crowds  were  handled  by 
500  ushers;  a  choir  of  1,200  singers  was  placed  under  the  order  of 
Mr.  Sankey  ;  several  hundred  Christian  workers  gave  their  services 
to  the  inquiry  rooms  for  inquiry  work.  There  were,  for  work  with 
the  unconverted,  each  day  two  general  directors  and  sixteen  Christian 
leaders  ;  each  leader  had  twelve  to  fourteen  helpers,  so  that  in  each 
of  the  seven  inquiry  rooms  there  were  usually  two  leaders  and 
twenty  to  thirty  helpers.     At  the  first  meeting   7,000  persons  were 


i«4  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

present  in  the  main  hall,  and  4,000  others  attending  the  overflow 
meeting,  while  several  thousand  were  left  in  the  streets.  The  ser- 
vice was  fittingly  opened  with  silent  prayer.  What  that  moment 
inaugurated  for  New  York  can  never  be  estimated. 

During  the  first  week  of  services  the  aim  was  to  arouse  pro- 
fessed Christians  to  a  higher  sense  of  their  responsibilities.  The 
noon  prayer  meeting  began  on  the  second  day,  and  at  the  prayer 
meeting  after  the  evening  service  that  same  day  almost  all  of  the 
great  audience  who  had  listened  to  Mr.  Moody's  sermon  on  faith, 
remained.  More  than  two  hundred  Christians  who  wished  their 
faith  quickened  arose  in  response  to  Mr.  Moody's  question,  and 
fifty  unconverted  persons  asked  for  prayer.  On  the  fourth  day 
there  were  five  distinct  meetings,  the  agfsrrep'a.te  attendance  being- 
about  20,000.  But  Sunday  was  naturally  marked  by  the  greatest 
crowds.  On  the  first  Sunday  more  than  25,000  persons  attended  the 
meetings.  There  were  on  that  day  two  exclusive  services,  one  for 
men  and  one  for  women.  At  the  afternoon  meeting  for  women,  on 
Sunday,  February  21st,  10,000  were  present.  At  the  evening  meet- 
ing on  that  day  such  numbers  arose  for  prayer  that  Mr.  Moody  said, 
"  There  are  so  many  I  can't  count  them  ;  truly,  God  is  in  this  house." 

Glorious   Enthusiasm   for  the   Lord 

The  last  two  days  of  the  Hippodrome  meetings,  April  i8th  and 
19th,  were  devoted  to  the  Christian  Convention  with  which  Mr. 
Moody's  meetings  generally  ended.  As  a  thank-offering  the  sum 
of  $135,000  was  raised.  The  last  meeting  for  converts  was  at- 
tended by  between  three  and  four  thousand  persons  who  were  able 
to  testify  to  their  conversion. 

Both  in  extent  of  time  and  in  the  results  accomplished  the 
campaign  in  the  New  York  Hippodrome  was  perhaps  the  most  im- 
portant   ever    conducted  by   Mr.    Moody.      In    moving    New  York 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  167 

God  moved  the  country,  and  the  voice  of  the  evangelists  was  heard 
throughout  the  land.  There  was  so  little  of  the  sensational  about 
the  meetings  that  a  narrative  concerning  them  may  seem  mono- 
tonous, for  the  reason  that  one  service  so  much  resembled  the 
others.  In  each  was  manifested  intense  earnestness  for  souls,  and 
glorious  enthusiasm  in  the  work  of  the  Lord, 

It  is  not  necessary  to  tell  of  all  the  great  series  of  meetings 
which  Mr.  Moody  conducted.  After  leaving  New  York  he  went 
by  way  of  Augusta,  Ga.,  Nashville,  Tenn.,  Louisville,  Ky.,  St. 
Louis,  Mo.,  and  Kansas  City,  Mo.,  to  Chicago,  and  in  all  these 
cities  his  labors  were  blessed  with  great  results.  His  greatest  meet- 
ings in  Chicago,  however,  were  not  held  until  October,  1876,  a  date 
from  which  they  continued  for  some  time.  The  campaign  in 
Boston  began  in  the  last  of  January,  1877.  The  Boston  meetings, 
like  those  in  other  cities,  were  a  wonderful  demonstration  of  God's 
power.  The  assistance  of  the  late  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon  and  Miss 
Frances  E.  Willard  was  especially  helpful.  Interest  was  so  great 
that  a  daily  paper.  The  Tabernacle,  was  published  to  further  the 
work.      Every  home  in  Boston  was  visited  by  Christian  workers. 

In   Baltimore   1878 

From  this  time  Mr.  Moody's  activity  seldom  ceased.  One 
tour  was  followed  by  another,  and  hardly  a  city  or  town  of  any 
great  importance  in  this  country  has  failed  to  receive  through  his 
help  a  renewal  of  interest  in  spiritual  affairs.  The  meetings  in 
Baltimore  in  1878  were  marked  by  such  notable  results  that  I  feel 
that  possibly  an  account  of  them  will  most  fittingly  close  this 
chapter  concerning  Mr.  Moody's  evangelistic  work  in  the  United 
States.  After  all  there  is  space  to  do  little  more  than  indicate  the 
general  nature  of  his  services  to  the  Lord. 


1 68  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

In  the  month  of  October,  1878  the  services  began  in  Balti- 
more. Mr.  Moody  had  received  a  pressing  invitation  to  visit 
Cleveland,  but  before  he  would  give  his  answer  he  felt  led  to  visit 
Baltimore.  On  his  arrival  he  called  into  counsel  some  of  the 
leading  laymen  of  the  city,  and  after  talking  the  matter  over  with 
them,  he  was  confident  that  God  wanted  him  in  that  city.  It  was  no 
half-hearted  service,  and,  when  he  came  to  do  his  work,  he  brought 
to  bear  upon  the  city  where  he  labored  all  his  own  personal  influ- 
ence, and  the  blessing  also  of  his  presence  of  his  family.  So, 
temporarily  he  removed  from  Northfield  and  came  to  dwell  in  Bal- 
timore. A  committee  of  laymen  was  selected  to  have  charge  of 
this  work.  The  committee  was  as  follows :  Dr.  James  Carey 
Thomas,  Dr.  P.  C.  Williams,  Gen.  John  S.  Berry,  Mr.  G.  S. 
Griffith,  Mr.  Henry  Taylor,  Mr.  George  W.  Corner,  and  Mr.  A.  M. 
Carter. 

Every   Evangelical   Denomination    Represented 

The  following  notice  one  day  appeared  in  the  daily  papers  : 
"  D.  L.  Moody  will  conduct  meetings  for  Christians  at  the  Mount 
Vernon  Place  M.  E.  Church,  Tuesday,  Wednesday,  Thursday  and 
Friday  of  this  week,  at  4  p.  m.  Subject :  "  The  Holy  Spirit."  The 
m^eetings  in  this  church  were  simply  preparatory  to  the  great  work 
which  was  yet  to  follow.  Every  evangelical  denomination  in  the 
city  was  represented. 

Special  meetings  for  men  were  held  in  the  Associate  Reformed 
Church,  and  noonday  meetings  were  held  in  the  Maryland  Insti- 
tute. There  were  some  notable  experiences  in  these  meetings. 
Several  gamblers  were  seated  in  one  of  their  accustomed  haunts 
one  evening  when  it  was  suggested  as  a  joke  that  they  go  to  hear 
Moody.  The  proposition  was  agreed  to.  The  meetings  were  being 
held  at  that  time  in  St.  Paul's  M.  E.  Church,  South.  At  the  close 
of  the   meeting   M.    Moody  started  towards    the   gamblers ;  they 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  169 

immediately  arose  to  leave  the  building.  He  called  out  to  them, 
"  Don't  go,  men  ;  I  want  to  see  you,"  but  they  kept  on  going. 
Following  after  them  he  called  out,  "  Come  back,  young  men,  come 
back ;"  but  they  refused  and  left.  A  few  days  after  this,  one  of 
them,  who  belonged  to  a  prominent  family  in  the  city,  was  taken 
very  sick,  and  as  he  lay  upon  his  bed  entirely  helpless,  was  asked  by 
one  of  Mr.  Moody's  workers,  if  he  would  not  come  to  Christ.  He 
made  this  promise  :  "  If  God  will  only  allow  me  to  leave  this  room 
I  will  become  a  Christian."  He  finally  recovered,  and  one  of  the 
first  things  he  did  was  to  go  to  the  meetings  which  were  being 
held  in  the  Associate  Reformed  Church.  At  the  close  of  the 
preaching  when  the  inquiry  meeting  was  announced,  Mr.  Moody 
started  down  the  east  side  aisle  where  this  man  was  sitting.  As 
he  approached  him  he  said,  "  I  am  glad  to  see  you,  I  have  been 
looking  for  you  several  weeks."  "Why,  you  don't  know  me,  Mr. 
Moody,"  said  the  man.  "Yes  I  do,"  he  answered,  "you  are  one 
of  those  gamblers  I  saw  out  at  Dr.  Cox's  church."  The  man 
fulfilled  his  promise  to  God  by  accepting  Christ  for  his  Saviour  ; 
gave  a  wonderful  testimony  of  His  saving  power,  and  was  instru- 
mental in  the  conversion  of  many  others  who  had  been  gamblers 

like  himself. 

"He  Could   Not  Burn  the  Impression" 

One  great  feature  of  Mr.  Moody's  work  had  always  been  the 
singing,  the  wisdom  of  which  may  be  seen  in  the  following :  While 
he  was  holding  services  in  the  Monument  Street  M.  E.  Church, 
a  man  addicted  to  drink  and  with  no  thought  of  God  attended 
one  of  the  meetings.  He  was  much  impressed  with  the  singing, 
particularly  with  one  hymn,  "Come,  O,  Come  to  Me."  He  heard 
the  announcement  for  the  day  meetings,  and  he  determined  to 
attend.  As  he  entered  the  church  Mr.  Bliss  was  singing  the  hymn 
above  mentioned.     The  man  bought  a  hymn  book  that  he  might 


I70  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

read   the  hymn   for  himself,   and   testified  that  he   had   no    peace. 

Finally  he  burned  the  book,  but  he  could  not  burn   the   impression 

that  had  been  made  by  the  Spirit.      He  then  drank  the  harder,  but 

could  not  drown  the   impression.      Time  passed  on  ;  one   night   he 

wandered  into  the  Methodist  Church,  and   as   he   did   so   he   heard 

them  singing  again,  "  Come,  O,  Come  to  Me,"  and  there  that  night 

he  obeyed  the  call  and  accepted   Christ.      The   hymn   was   number 

eighty-eight   (88)  in    Gospel    Hymns,    No.    3.      Mr.    Moody  always 

spoke  of  him  after  that  as  No.  88. 

During  the  meetings  at  Broadway  M.  E.  Church,  a  pickpocket 

entered  the  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  relieving  some  one  of  his 

gold  watch,  which  he  was  not  long  in  doing  ;  after  procuring  his 

prize,  he  started  to  leave  the  church  but  was  unable  to  do  so,  for 

those  who  were  in   had  to   remain,  and   those   who  were   out   could 

not  get    in  ;  he  was   therefore   led  to    listen,   was  much   impressed 

with   the   sermon,   and   stayed  for  the    inquiry  meeting,   where  he 

accepted  Christ  as  his  personal  Saviour.     The   next  day  the  door 

bell  of  the  parsonage  was  rung,  and  when  the  servant  answered, 

she  found  no  one,  but  tied  to  the  knob  of  the  door  was  a  package. 

This   when  opened  was  found  to  contain  a  gold  watch  and  chain, 

and  with  it  a  note  stating  the  facts,  and  asking  that  it  be  returned 

to  the  owner,  which  was  done.     The  repentant  thief  gave  his  name 

and  address,   but  asked  that  he    might   be  forgiven,  as   God  had 

forgiven  him. 

"Do  You   Want  This  Saviour" 

Dr.  Leyburn's  church  (Associate  Reformed),  where  the  meet- 
ings, for  men  only,  were  held  at  4  p.  m.  was  the  scene  of  many  new 
births.  One  day  a  man  who  had  lost  all  through  drink  and  who 
had  brought  his  family  to  the  verge  of  starvation,  was  asked  by  an 
unsaved  man  to  go  to  hear  Mr.  Moody.  At  first  he  ridiculed  the 
idea,  but  finally   said,  "  Can   a   fellow  get  warm   there  ?"   (his  feet 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  171 

being  out  of  his  shoes).  On  being  assured  that  he  could,  he  went. 
He  was  ushered  to  the  third  seat  from  the  front.  Mr.  Moody  took 
for  his  text  Matt.  1:21,  "  Thou  shah  call  his  name  Jesus  for  he  shall 
save  his  people  from  their  sins."  The  man  said  to  himself,  "That  is 
what  I  need,  some  one  to  save  me  from  my  sins  ;  I  have  been 
trying  to  save  myself,  and  have  made  a  miserable  failure."  When 
Mr.  Moody  had  finished  his  talk,  he  looked  straight  at  the  man, 
and  said,  "Do  you  want  this  Saviour?"  He  answered,  "I  do." 
Turning  to  one  of  the  workers,  Mr.  Moody  said,  "  Go  talk  to  that 
man."  In  a  little  while  the  worker  said,  "Would  you  like  me  to 
pray  with  you  ?"  The  man  replied,  "  That  is  just  what  I  have  been 
wanting  you  to  do  ever  since  you  have  been  here."  The  worker 
prayed,  and  a  familiar  expression  with  that  man  afterward  was,  "  I 
left  my  sins  in  the  third  pew  of  Dr.  Leyburn's  church."  He  became 
a  great  worker  for  Christ,  and  is  now  a  preacher  of  the  Gospel. 

"  What  Think  Ye  of  Christ  " 

In  this  same  church  a  physician  who  was  an  infidel,  attended 
the  services,  simply  through  curiosity.  Mr.  Moody's  text  was, 
"  What  think  ye  of  Christ  ?"  The  next  day  he  attended  again, 
and  Mr.  Moody  spoke  on  "Walking  with  God".  He  began  an 
investigation  to  find  if  such  a  person  did  really  live.  This  must  be 
done  outside  the  Word  of  God  as  he  did  not  claim  to  believe  in  the 
Bible.  The  result  of  his  investigation  was  the  acceptance  of  the 
Christ  of  God  and  Bible.  Since  that  time  he  has  been  an  active 
Christian  worker. 

Perhaps  no  meetings  were  more  interesting  than  those  held  in 
the  Maryland  Institute  at  noon.  At  the  door  taking  tickets  was  a 
man  who,  but  a  few  months  before,  was  running  a  beer  saloon  in 
East  Baltimore.  On  entering,  one  who  knew  him  said,  "Why, 
Tom,  what  are  you  doing  here  ?"      His  reply  was,  "  O,  I  have  given 


172  EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 

up  that  business  and  accepted  Jesus  Christ  as  my  Saviour,  and  now 

I  am  a  doorkeeper  in  the  house  of  my  God." 
]  On  the   26th    of   March,  1879,  Detective   Tod   B.  Hall,  of  the 

Baltimore  City  Detective  Force,  entered  the  Institute  looking  for 
;  a  man  with  whom  he  had  business,  who,  he  was  told,  was  in  the 
\  meeting^.  He  was  persuaded  to  remain  and  was  ushered  to  a  front 
■     seat.      He    was    much    impressed    with   Mr.    Moody's    earnestness 

and  simplicity.     The  text  was  John  HI:  14,  15.      "As  Moses  lifted 

up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  etc."     When  he  had  finished  his 

sermon,  Mr.  Moody  asked  that  all  Christians  rise,  and  many  arose. 

Then  he  said,  "  All  those  who  believe  that  by  putting  into 
i  practice  what  I  have  said  they  will  receive  the  benefits  of  a  saved 
j  life,  please  rise. " 

The  Detective  Was  One   of  the  First  to  Rise 

He  then  and  there  believed  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  re- 
ceived Him  as  his  personal  Saviour.  Passing  out  from  the  seats  into 
the  aisle  he  was  met  by  many  who  knew  him,  and  to  all  he  said,  "  It 
is  settled  I  am  determined  to  live  a  different  life  the  balance  of  my 
days."  He  entered  the  Institute  to  find  a  man,  and  found  The 
Man  Chript  Jesus.  His  first  act  was  to  go  to  the  City  Hall,  and 
into  the  ofihce  where  the  detectives  were  at  that  hour  of  the  day. 
He  told  them  what  he  had  done,  and  how  he  proposed  by  God's 
help  to  live,  and  then  said,  "  Now,  boys,  all  I  ask  is,  don't  ridicule 
me,  but  give  me  your  sympathy."  He  then  and  there  started  for 
his   home,  and   when   he   arrived   he  found   a   sti-ange   lady  in    the 

/  house,  and  the  devil  suggested,  "  Don't  say  anything  until  this 
strange  lady  is  gone."     In  his  own  language,  "  I  saw  it  was  a  trick 

i     of   the  devil,"   and  walking  to  the   center   of  the   room   he  said. 

I    *'  Annie,  I  left  you  this  morning  not  worthy  the  name  of  a  husband, 

1    not  worthy  the  name  of  father  to  our  children,  but  a  little  while 


JEVANGELISTIC  work  in  the  united  states  173 

ago,  at  the  Mai-yland  Institute,  I  determined  to  live  a  different  life  ; 
let  us  kneel  down  and  ask  God  to  help  me  be  a  better  man."  They 
did  so,  that  being-  the  first  prayer  ever  offered  by  him  in  his  home  ; 
when  he  arose  his  wife  said,  "Tod,  if  you  have  made  up  your  mind 
to  be  a  Christian  I  will  be  one  too  ;"  and  they  both  took  their  stand 
for  Christ  the  same  day.  And  no  one  who  visited  that  home  after 
that  day,  would  doubt  that  Christ  had  an  abiding  place  there. 
In  July,  1896,  his  wife  took  her  departure  to  be  with  Christ; 
as  she  bade  him  good-bye  she  said,  "  Tod,  I'll  wait  and  watch 
for  you,  and  give  you  a  royal  welcome  when  you  come." 

He   Led  Scores  of  Men  to  Christ 

I  know  of  very  few  men  who  have  been  more  wonderfully 
blessed  in  their  Christian  experience  than  Tod  B.  Hall.  I  have 
seen  him  in  my  own  church,  and  in  other  places,  literally  lead 
scores  of  men  to  Christ. 

In  the  same  place  one  day,  as  Mr.  Moody  was  working  in  the 
after-meeting,  he  came  to  a  man  in  the  centre  aisle  and  said,  "  Are 
you  a  Christian  ?"  To  this  question  the  man  replied,  "Yes  sir.  I 
am  glad  to  say,  Mr.  Moody,  I  am."  Passing  on,  he  came  to  one 
who  was  not  a  Christian.  He  suddenly  turned  to  one  of  the  ushers 
and  said,  "  Tell  that  man  to  come  here"  (referring  to  the  one  who 
was  glad  he  was  a  Christian).  As  he  approached,  Mr.  Moody  said, 
"  Sit  down  there  and  talk  to  this  man."  Whereupon  the  man  re- 
plied, "You  will  have  to  excuse  me,  Mr.  Moody  ;  that  is  something 
I  never  do."  Mr.  Moody  turned  to  him  quickly  and  said,  "  Either 
sit  down  and  talk  to  that  man,  or  else  sit  down  and  let  some  one 
talk  to  you." 

On  Friday  evening,  May  i6th,  Mr.  Moody  preached  his  last 
public  sermon  in  the  Mount  Vernon  Church,  where  nearly  eight 
months  before  he  had  begun   the  meetings.       On  the  evening  of 


174 


EVANGELISTIC  WORK  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 


May  26th,  after  the  usual  meeting  of  the  converts  in  the  Y.  M.  C.  A, 
rooms,  conducted  by  E.  W.  Bliss  it  was  proposed  that  the  entire 
company  go  in  a  body  to  Mr.  Moody's  house  on  Lanvale  street. 
He  was  to  leave  the  next  day,  and  all  wanted  to  show  their  love 
in  this  simply  way.  On  reaching  his  house  they  sang,  "  He 
will  hide  us".  Mr.  Moody  appeared  and  spoke  loving  words 
,  in  saying  good-bye.  One  of  the  company  then  sang,  "  There's  a 
land  that  is  fairer  than  day  ".  Mr.  Moody  then  offered  a  fervent 
prayer  and  said  good-bye.  The  next  day  he  left  for  his  home  in 
Northfield 


CHAPTER  XI!. 

Mr.  Moody  In  Two  Wars. 

WHEN  the  Civil  War  broke  out  Mr.  Moody  was  one  of  the 
busiest  men  in  Chicago.  The  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association  work  and  his  Mission  were  occupying  his 
time  fully,  but  he  and  his  associates  were  not  slow  to  see  the  great 
opportunity  which  the  army  camps  afforded  to  reach  throngs  of 
men  who  were  not  easy  to  approach  under  normal  conditions. 
Not  lonof  after  the  commencement  of  hostilities  there  came  into 
being  two  great  organizations,  the  Sanitary  Commission  and  the 
Christian  Commission — the  one  to  look  after  the  physical  welfare, 
the  other  to  look  after  the  spiritual  welfare  of  the  soldiers. 

The  Sanitary  and  Christian  Commissions. 

The  Sanitary  Commission  was  the  result  of  the  federation  of 
the  so-called  "  Soldiers'  Aid  Societies  ",  which  had  individually 
already  accomplished  much  good.  At  the  outset  the  Government 
had  not  approved  of  these  societies,  fearing  the  effect  of  their 
operation  upon  the  discipline  of  the  troops,  but,  as  their  value 
became  more  apparent,  and  after  they  had  been  consolidated  in  one 
general  organization,  the  field  widened  until  the  Sanitary  Com- 
mission ranged  in  importance  along  with  the  Government  Medical 
Bureau. 

The  Christian  Commission  was  projected  by  a  convention, 
held  in  Norfolk,  Va.,  November  i6,  1861,  and  Mr.  Georgre  H. 
Stuart,  of  Philadelphia,  was  elected  president.      Like  the   Sanitar;/ 

(175) 


\ 


176  MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS 

Commission  it  was  recognized  and  countenanced  by  the  Govern- 
ment. Says  one  writer :  "  The  Commissions  aided  the  surgeon, 
helped  the  chaplain,  followed  the  armies  in  their  marches,  went 
into  the  trenches  and  along  the  picket-lines.  Wherever  there  was 
a  sick,  a  wounded,  a  dying  man,  an  agent  of  the  Christian  Com- 
mission was  near  by."  As  often  as  possible  the  workers  gave 
Christian  burial  to  the  dead,  and  marked  the  graves  so  that  later 
they  could  be  identified  by  the  relatives  or  friends.  Religious 
services  were  conducted  in  camp  or  in  the  field  ;  religious  literature 
was  distributed  widely  ;  in  short,  every  means  was  employed  to  turn 
to  the  call  of  their  Divine  Master  the  attention  of  thousands  of 
men  who  had  answered  their  country's  call. 

Mr.   Moody's  Zeal 

The  Chicago  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  was  one  of 
many  whose  individual  efforts  in  behalf  of  the  soldiers  led  to  the 
convention  which  formed  the  Christian  Commission.  The  devo- 
tional committee,  of  which  Mr.  Moody  was  chairman,  began  to 
work  immediately  after  the  second  call  for  volunteers,  when  the 
great  rendezvous  of  Camp  Douglas  was  established  near  the 
southern  limits  of  Chicairo.  The  committee  was  on  the  o-round  at 
1  the  arrival  of  the  first  regiment,  and  began  prayer  meetings  at 
;  once.  Relisfious  literature  was  griven  out  amonor  the  soldiers,  and 
Sunday  services  were  established  where  they  could  easily  be 
attended  by  the  soldiers.  The  work  spread  so  rapidly  that  the 
committee  was  oblig-ed  to  send  out  a  call  for  assistants.  One 
hundred  and  fifty  men,  clerical  and  lay,  responded,  and  eight  or 
ten  meetings  were  held  every  evening  in  the  different  camps. 
During  the  war  the  Association  held  more  than  1,500  services 
in  or  near  Chicago.  The  Association  Chapel,  built  at  Camp 
Douglas  in  October,  1861,  was  the  first  camp  chapel  erected. 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS  177 

Soldiers   who   were   converted   at  Camp  Douglas  went   to   the 
front,    and    presently  a  call    came    to   Chicago    to    send   Christian 
workers  to  the  Union  lines.      Mr.  Moody  answered  this   invitation 
in  person,  being  the  first  regular  army  delegate  from  Chicago.      His  | 
earliest  work  in  the  field  was  with    the    troops  near  Fort  Donelson. 

Mr.  Moody's  idea  of  the  best  treatment  for  dying  soldiers  v^as 
to  carry  to  them  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  and  to  point  out  to 
them  the  open  gates  of  Heaven.  He  maintained  that  the  adminis- 
tration of  physical  comforts  was  comparatively  an  unimport^.nt 
matter.  When  death  is  a  question  of  only  a  few  hours  and  he 
whom  the  dark  angel  is  claiming  is  far  from  the  path  of  righteous- 
ness, who  will  care  to  hear  of  temporal  things  while  some  friend 
stands  ready,  to  lead  him  back  to  the  way  of  truth  } 

Experiences  From  the  War 

As  long  as  the  War  continued  Mr.  Moody  went  back  and  fcrth 
between  Chicago  and  the  various  camps  and  battlefields.  How 
his  experience  was  widened,  how  his  faith  was  strengthened  by  the 
visions  of  grace  which  God  permitted  him  to  see  !  The  triumphant 
deaths  which  he  and  his  fellow  laborers  witnessed  are  almost  beyond 
enumeration.  Many  were  the  assurances  of  salvation  which  came 
to  their  ears  from  dying  lips,  and  they  saw  hundreds  of  ashy 
faces  lighted  up  with  a  "light  that  never  was,  on  sea  or  land".  It 
was  practical  work,  this.  Often  there  was  time  only  for  a  few 
words  of  prayer,  or  a  brief  exhortation  But  God's  blessing  came 
with  the  asking. 

From  the  many  stories  which  I  have  heard  Mr.  Moody  tell  of 
his  experiences  during  the  terrible  years  of  the  war,  I  have  selected 
the  following  : 

"  I  was  in  a  hospital  at  Murfreesboro,  and  one  night  after  mid- 
night I  was  wpke  up  and  told  that  there  was  a  man  in  one  of  the 


I7S  MR.  MOODY  JN  TWO   WARS 

wards  who  wanted  to  see  me.  I  went  to  him,  and  he  called  me 
'  chaplain ' — I  wasn't  a  chaplain — and  he  said  he  wanted  me  to 
help  him  die.  And  I  said,  'I'd  take  you  right  up  in  my  arms  and 
carry  you  Into  the  Kingdom  of  God  if  I  could  ;  but  I  can't  do  it ;  I 
can't  help  you  to  die.'  And  he  said,  *  Who  can?'  I  said,  'The 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  can — He  came  for  that  purpose.'  He  shook  his 
head  and  said,  'He  can't  save  me  ;  I  have  sinned  all  my  life.'  And 
I  said,  '  But  He  came  to  save  sinners.'  I  thought  of  his  mother  in 
the  North,  and  I  knew  that  she  was  anxious  that  he  should  die 
rio-ht,  and  I  thought  I'd  stay  with  him.  I  prayed  two  or  three 
times,  and  repeated  all  the  promises  I  could,  and  I  knew  that  in  a 
few  hours  he  would  be  gone.  I  said  I  wanted  to  read  him  a  conversa- 
tion that  Christ  had  with  a  man  who  was  anxious  about  his  soul. 
I  turned  to  the  third  chapter  of  John.  His  eyes  were  riveted  on 
me,  and  when  I  came  to  the  14th  and  15th  verses,  he  caught  up 
the  words,  '  As  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness, 
even  so  must  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted  up ;  that  whosoever 
believeth  on  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal  life.'  He 
stopped  me  and  said,  '  Is  that  there  ?'  I  said,  'Yes, '  and  he  asked 
me  to  read  it  again,  and  I  did  so.  He  leaned  his  elbows  on  the  cot 
and  clasped  his  hands  together  and  said,  '  That's  good  ;  won't  you 

read  it  again  ? ' 

He  Entered  the   Kingdom  of  God 

''  I  read  it  the  third  time,  and  then  went  on  with  the  rest  of 
the  chapter.  When  I  finished,  his  eyes  were  closed,  his  hands  were 
folded,  and  there  was  a  smile  on  his  face.  O  !  how  it  was  lit  up  ! 
What  a  change  had  come  over  it  !  I  saw  his  lips  cjuivering,  and  I 
leaned  over  him  and  heard,  in  a  faint  whisper,  '  As  Moses  lifted  up 
the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  so  must  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted  up, 
that  whosoever  believeth  on  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eter- 
nal life.'     He  opened  his  eyes  a^nd  said,  '  That's  enough  ;  don't  read 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS  179 

any  more.'  He  lingered  a  few  hours,  and  then  pillowed  his  head  on 
those  two  verses  and  went  up  in  one  of  Christ's  chariots  and  took 
his  seat  in  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

"  You  may  spurn  God's  remedy  and  perish  ;  but  I  tell  you 
God  don't  want  you  to  perish.  He  says,  '  As  I  live  I  have  no  plea- 
sure in    the   death  of  the  wicked.'      '  Turn  ye,  turn  ye,  for  why  will 

ye  die  ?  '  " 

A   Christian   Soldier 

"  After  the  terrible  battle  of  Pittsburg  Landing,  we  were  taking 
the  wounded  down  the  Tennessee  River  to  a  hospital.  I  said  to 
some  of  the  Christian  Commission,  'We  must  not  let  a  man  die  on 
the  boat  without  telling  him  of  Christ  and  Heaven.'  You  know 
the  cry  of  a  wounded  man  is  '  Water  !  water !  '  As  we  passed 
along  from  one  to  another,  giving  them  water,  we  tried  to  tell  them 
of  the  water  of  life,  of  which,  if  they  would  drink,  they  would  never 
die.  I  came  to  one  man  who  had  about  as  fine  a  face  as  I  ever  saw. 
I  spoke  to  him,  but  he  did  not  answer.  I  went  to  the  doctor,  and 
said  :  '  Doctor,  do  you  think  that  man  will  recover? '  '  No;  he  lost 
so  much  blood  before  we  got  him  off  the  field  that  he  fainted  while 
we  were  amputating  his  leg.  He  will  never  recover.'  I  said  :  '  I 
can't  find  out  his  name,  and  it  seems  a  pity  to  let  him  die  without 
knowing  who  he  is.  Don't  you  think  we  can  bring  him  to  ? '  '  You 
may  give  him  a  little  brandy  and  water,'  said  the  doctor  ;  '  that  will 
revive  him  if  anything  will.' 

"  Tell  my  Mother  I    Died  Trusting  in  Jesus  " 

"  T  sat  down  beside  him,  and  gave  him  brandy  and  water  every 
now  and  then.  While  I  was  waiting  I  said  to  a  man  near  by  :  '  Do 
you  know  this  man  ?  '  '0  yes,  that  is  my  chum.'  '  Has  he  a  father 
and  mother  living?'  '  He  has  a  widowed  mother.'  '  Has  he  any 
brothers  or  sisters  ?'    '  Two  sisters  •  but  he  is  the  only  son.'   '  What 


i8o  MR.   MOODY  IN  TWO    WARS 

is  his  name  ?'  'William  Clarke.'  I  said  to  myself  that  I  could  not 
let  him  die  without  getting  a  message  for  that  mother.  Presently 
he  opened  his  eyes,  and  I  said  :  '  William,  do  you  know  where  you 
are  ?'  He  looked  around  a  little  dazed,  and  then  said  :  '  O,  yes  ;  I 
am  on  my  way  home  to  mother.'  '  Yes,  you  are  on  your  way  home,'  I 
said  ;  '  but  the  doctor  says  you  won't  reach  your  earthly  home.  I 
thought  I'd  like  to  ask  you  if  you  had  any  message  for  your  mother.' 
His  face  lighted  up  with  an  unearthly  glow,  as  he  said:  '  O,  yes; 
tell  my  mother  that  I  died  trusting  in  Jesus.'  It  was  one  of  the 
sweetest  things  I  ever  heard  in  my  life  !  Presently,  I  said  :  '  Any- 
thing else,  William  ? '  With  a  beautiful  smile  he  said,  '  Tell  my 
mother  and  sisters  to  be  sure  and  meet  me  in  Heaven  ; '  and  he 
closed  his  eyes.  He  was  soon  unconscious  again,  and  in  a  few 
hours  his  soul  took  its  flight  to  join  his  Lord  and  Master. 

The   Prison   Doors  Opened 

"It  was  my  privilege  to  go  to  Richmond  with  General  Grant's 
army.  Now  just  let  us  picture  a  scene.  There  are  a  thousand 
poor  captives,  and  they  are  lawful  captives,  prisoners  in  Libby 
Prison.  Talk  to  some  of  them  that  have  been  there  for  months, 
and  hear  them  tell  their  story.  I  have  wept  for  hours  to  hear  them 
tell  how  they  suffered,  how  they  could  not  hear  from  their  homes 
and  their  loved  ones  for  long  intervals,  and  how  sometimes  they 
would  get  messages  that  their  loved  ones  were  dying,  and  they  could 
not  get  home  to  be  with  them  in  their  dying  hours.  Let  us,  for 
illustration,  picture  a  scene.  One  beautiful  day  in  spring  they  are 
there  in  the  prison.  All  news  has  been  kept  from  them.  They 
have  not  heard  what  has  been  going  on  around  Richmond,  and  I 
can  imagine  one  says  one  day,  '  Ah,  boys,  listen  !  I  hear  a  band 
of  music,  and  it  sounds  as  if  they  were  playing  the  old  battle-cry  of 
the   Republic.      It  sounds  as  if  they  were   playing  the   'The  Star 


...\ MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS  i8i 

Spangled  Banner  !  Long  may  it  wave  o'er  the  land  of  the  free  and 
tlie  home  of  the  brave  ! '  And  the  hearts  of  the  poor  fellows  begin 
to  leap  for  joy.  *  I  believe  Richmond  is  taken.  I  believe  they  are 
coming  to  deliver  us  ; '  and  every  man  in  that  prison  is  full  of 
joy,  and  by  and  by  the  sound  comes  nearer  and  they  see  it  is  so. 
It  is  the  Union  army  !  Next  the  doors  of  the  prison  are  unlocked  ; 
they  fly  wide  open,  and  those  thousands  of  men  are  set  free.  Wasn't  ; 
that  good  news  to  them  ?  Could  there  have  been  any  better  news  ? 
They  are  out  of  prison,  out  of  bondage,  delivered.  Christ  came  to 
proclaim  liberty  to  the  captive.  " 

Reminiscences  or  a  Veteran 

A  veteran  of  the  war  tells  the  following  story,  which,  while 
Its  importance  is  slight ,  gives  an  idea  of  the  interest  aroused  by 
Mr.  Moody's  work. 

"  The  death  of  Mr.  Moody  calls  to  my  mind  the  first  time  I 
ever  saw  or  heard  of  him.  It  was  at  Murfreesboro,  Tenn,,  in  the 
spring  of  1862,  when  General  Rosecrans  was  preparing  his  army 
for  an  advance  on  Tullahoma.  Moody  came  there  under  the 
auspices  of  the  Christian  Commission.  His  preaching  resulted  in 
quite  a  revival  in  a  number  of  regiments  and  brigades,  and  caused 
considerable  excitement  and  great  interest.  General  Alexander 
McDowell  McCook,  who  commanded  one  of  the  corps,  became 
much  interested  in  the  work.  There  was  something  of  a  rivalry 
between  a  number  of  regiments  as  to  which  furnished  the  most 
recruits  to  Moody's  Christian  army.  They  told  a  story  on  Colonel 
Fred  Kneffler,  of  an  Indiana  regiment,  who  was  an  enthusiastic 
admirer  and  defender  of  his  regiment  and  did  not  propose  to  allow 
it  to  play  second  to  any  regiment  in  the  army  of  the  Cumberland. 

"  One  day  an  officer  of  another  regiment  came  over  and 
related  in  the  hearing  of  Colonel  Kneffler  that  the  evening  before 


i82  MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS 

some  twenty  converts  had  been  baptized.  This  made  the  number 
exceed  the  converts  of  Colonel  Fred's  regiment  by  some  twelve  or 
fifteen.  The  Colonel  immediately  summoned  his  adjutant  and  in 
his  extremely  German  brogue — made  more  broken  by  the  excite- 
ment under  which  he  labored — -ordered  him  to  detail  fifteen  men 
and  have  them  baptized  without  delay." 

The  Revival  at  Camp  Douglas 

Mr,  Moody  was  at  Shiloh,  at  Murfreesboro,  with  the  army  at  • 
Cleveland  and  Chattanooga ;  he  was  one  of  the  first  to  enter 
Richmond  with  Grant's  army,  devoting  himself  there  to  the  soldiers 
of  both  armies  without  discrimination.  But  the  greatest  Christian 
work  with  which  he  was  connected  during  the  war  was  the  revival 
among  the  Confederate  prisoners  at  Camp  Douglas.  This  camp, 
originally  used  for  the  instruction  of  Union  recruits,  was  trans" 
formed  into  a  prison  at  the  time  when  about  10,000  rebel  captives 
were  sent  there  after  the  taking  of  Fort  Donelson.  The  burden 
of  the  souls  of  these  men  lay  heavy  on  Mr.  Moody's  heart.  One 
day  he  secured  a  permit  to  visit  them,  and  gave  it  to  the  secretary 
of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  himself  accompanying 
him  in  the  thought  that  as  assistant  to  the  other  he  mig-ht  enter  the 
lines  without  a  question.  The  guard  refused  to  let  both  the  men 
in  on  one  pass,  Mr.  Moody  exhibiting  in  vain  the  can  of  oil  which 
he  was  carrying  to  furnish  light  for  the  service.  But  the  offiicer  of 
the  day,  v/ho  overheard  the  conversation  and  came  up  to  Investigate, 
recognized  Mr.  Moody  and  took  him  to  headquarters,  where 
through  the  exercise  of  his  official  Influence  the  young  missionary 
was  given  a  pass  to  go  In  and  hold  meetings  for  the  prisoners 
whenever  he  might  choose. 

A  few  minutes  later  Mr.  Moody  and  his  friend,  Mr.  Hawley, 
began   their   first    meeting   for  the   prisoners.      Deep  interest  was 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO  WARS  183 

manifested  from  the  start.  Meetings  were  held  in  the  prison  camp 
thereafter  every  afternoon  and  evening.  Great  numbers  were 
soundly  converted,  and  they  were  organized  into  a  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association.  As  large  an  opportunity  as  possible  was 
given  them  for  Christian  culture.  In  this  revival  work  a  great 
many  Christian  ministers  and  laymen  assisted. 

What   He   Did  for  the   Prisoners 

The  report  of  the  Army  Committee  for  the  year  1865  shows  a    f 
distribution  of  1,537  Bibles,  20,565  Testaments,  1,000  prayer  books, 
2,025  hymn  books,  24,896   other  religious  books,   127,545    religious    ( 
newspapers,    and   43,450   pages   of    tracts,    besides    28,400   literary 
papers  and  magazines.      The  Camp  Douglas  chapel  was  erected  at   j 
a  cost    of    $2,300,  and   a   soldiers'    library   and  reading  room  were  ] 
furnished  by  the  Association,  in  a  building  erected  by  the  Christian 
Commission.      This  was  all  in  addition  to  the  regular  home  work. 

An  employment  bureau  was  established  this  year,  chiefly  for 
the  benefit  of  the  many  wounded  soldiers  who  were  continually 
applying  to  the  Association  for  assistance.  Situations  were  found 
for  1,435  rnen,  124  boys,  and  718  girls,  besides  transient  employ- 
ment for  many  persons  who  were  unable  to  get  out  to  service. 

All  this  work  was  due  in  large  part  to  the  consecrated  zeal  of 
Mr.  Moody.  He  never  would  be  limited  to  a  certain  line  of 
opportunity,  but  always  took  advantage  of  every  chance  to  do 
something  for  his  Master.  His  work  during  the  Civil  War  exempli- 
fied all  those  qualifications  of  his  which  shone  through  his  later  and 
more  extended  efforts,  and  it  was  for  him,  moreover,  practically 
the  first  recognition  he  received  outside  his  own  city  of  Chicago. 

More  than  thirty  years  passed  by  before  the  United  States  | 
again  found  itself  in  arms.  Like  the  Civil  War,  the  War  with  \ 
Spain  was  undertaken  for  the  relief  of  an  oppressed  people.      The  / 


i84  MR.  MOODY  IM  TWO   WARS 

opportunity  for  a  Christian    campaign    in   the    army  camps  was   as 

great  in  1898   as  in  1S61,  perhaps  greater,  and  the  organized  forces 

of   Christian  workers  were  much  more  efficient  at  the  outset  in   the 

later  year.      This  increased  efficiency  in  Christian  organization,  who 

shall    say  in    how  much   it   was  due  to  Mr.  Moody's  service  during 

the  long  interval  ? 

In  the   War  With   Spain 

April  25,  1898,  three  days  after  the  President's  first  call  for 
volunteers,  the  International  Committee  of  the  Young-  Men's  Chris- 
tian  Association  met  in  New  York  City  to  discuss  the  situation, 
and  decided  to  undertake  immediately  a  work  among  the  soldiers 
and  sailors.  The  organization  had  the  machinery  necessary  for 
the  undertaking.  In  nearly  700  cities  throughout  the  country 
there  were  local  associations  ;  these  in  the  several  states  were 
united  in  state  organizations,  with  state  committees  and  state 
secretaries,  and  were  finally  all  bound  together  in  an  international 
ororanization,  with  its  international  committee,  sub-committees  and 
Secretaries.  Accordingly,  in  order  to  promote  united  effort  and 
to  secure  effective  co-operation,  the  International  committee  ap- 
pointed a  sub-committee  to  organize  and  supervise  the  work,  its 
official  title  being  "  The  Army  and  Navy  Christian  Commission  of 
the  International  Committee  of  Youngs  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tions,"  The  work  of  the  Commission  was  divided  into  three  depart- 
ments :  the  Executive,  for  general  supervision,  with  Colonel  John 
J.  McCook  as  chairman  ;  the  General  work,  for  the  direction  of  the 
social,  physical  and  regular  religious  effort,  including  the  Bible 
classes,  with  C.  W.  McAlpin  as  chairman  ;  and  the  Evangelistic 
department,  for  the  promotion  of  evangelistic  effort  in  the  different 
camps,  with  D.  L.  Moody  as  chairman. 

The  Evangelistic  department  through  Mr.  Moody  kept  a  force 
of  clergymen   and    evangelists   in   the   field,  co-operating   with    the 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   W^ARS  185 

regular  relisfious  work  carried  on  in  the  tents.  A  careful  and  con- 
servative  estimate  shows  over  8,000  soldiers  who  publicly  professed 
to  accept  Christ  in  all  the  meetings  during  the  summer,  while  the 
number  of  those  stimulated  in  their  Christian  lives  cannot  be  esti- 
mated. An  interesting  fact  in  this  connection  is  that  the  regiments 
that  suffered  most  in  the  battles  around  Santiago  were,  with  few 
exceptions,  the  regiments  that,  when  in  Tampa,  were  encamped 
around  the  great  canvas-covered  tabernacle  where  were  held 
nightly  services,  some  of  which  were  attended  by  more  than  2,500 
soldiers,  and  where  many  of  these  men  became  Christians.  One  of 
these  companies  went  into  the  battle  with  seventy-six  men,  and 
the  next  day,  at  roll  call,  only  seventeen  answered. 

The  work  was  established  In  the  regiments  of  colored  troops 
at  the  various  camps,  with  colored  young  men  of  influence  and 
ability  In  charge.  ,  This  received  the  approbation  of  all  students  of 
the  race  problem.  A  prominent  colored  minister,  after  watching 
it  carefully,  termed  It  the  "  most  practical  and  most  helpful  work  I 
have   ever  seen  carried  on  among  the  colored  people," 

ViSIT/PTION    OF    THE    SiCK 

In  all  the  camps  visitation  of  the  sick  was  carried  on,  both  the 
camp  secretaries  and  visiting  evangelists  taking  part  in  this  service. 

The  following  Is  one  of  many  Incidents  :  A  new  ward  being 
opened  one  day  was  at  once  filled  with  sixty-six  Invalid  soldiers.  Going 
through  the  wards  a  worker  came  in  contact  with  a  sick  boy  from  a 
Pennsylvania  regiment,  and  stopping  to  talk  to  him,  found  the  boy 
ready  for  the  Gospel  message.  The  boy  said  he  came  from  a 
Christian  home  and  had  a  brother  in  the  missionary  field,  but  that 
he  had  been  a  bad  boy  and  had  given  his  family  much  trouble. 
After  talking  with  him  a  while,  he  said  to  the  secretary,  "  Do  you 
mean  to  say  that  I  can  be  saved   now  and   here  ?  "     The   secretary 


1 86  MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WAR^ 

assured  him  that  such  was  the  case,  and  opened  to  him  the  simple 
way  of  salvation.  Before  the  secretary  left,  the  boy  joined  him  in 
prayer,  praying  for  himself,  and  when  he  was  leaving  he  said, 
"  Now,  remember,  chaplain,  I  have  accepted  Jesus  Christ  as  my 
personal  Saviour,  and  in  so  doing  you  tell  me  I  am  saved."  He 
exacted  a  promise  from  the  secretary  that  he  would  return  during 
the  evening,  and  when  he  returned  the  boy  greeted  him  cheerfully, 
and  said,  "  I  am  a  very  sick  boy,  but  remember,  whatever  comes,  I 
tell  you  now  that  I  have  accepted  Jesus  Christ  and  am  trusting 
Him  as  my  Saviour."  The  next  morning,  as  the  secretary  made 
his  rounds,  the  soldier  boy  had  gone  to  his  long  home. 

On  Sea  and   Land 

The  Commission  followed  closely  in  the  wake  of  the  Army  of 
invasion,  and  pressed  its  work  among  the  soldiers  around  Santiago 
de  Cuba.  It  followed  General  Miles'  army  to  Porto  Rico,  and 
with  the  third  expedition  to  the  Philippines  workers  and  equip- 
ment were  sent  to  render  similar  service. 

The  Navy  Department  at  Washington  supported  the  plan 
cordially,  although  from  the  nature  of  the  case  it  was  not  easy  to 
accomplish  work  on  the  ships.  It  was  decided  to  place  a  represen- 
tative of  the  Commission  on  each  ship  that  had  no  regular  chaplain, 
but  the  war  was  over  so  quickly  that  only  one  vessel  was  thus  sup- 
plied. An  idea  of  the  feasibility  of  the  work,  however,  is  shown 
in  the  following  incident  from  the  one  worker's  report  : 

"  At  first,  as  I  started  to  go  over  the  ship  with  other  things,  I 
would  fill  my  side  pockets  with  copies  of  the  New  Testament, 
and  give  a  copy  away  now  and  then,  after  a  special  personal  talk 
with  an  open-hearted  sailor  or  marine.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  I 
thought  there  would  be  no  general  eagerness  for  the  books,  and  so 
great  tact  should  be  exercised  in  giving  them  out.     I  said  to  myself 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS  187 

the  first  clay,  '  These  300  Testaments  will  last  through  my  entire 
service,'  but  I  was  utterly  mistaken.  One  day  a  marine  said, 
'  What  are  those  little  books  in  your  pockets?'  I  replied,  'Testa- 
ments.' Then  he  quickly  said,  '  Will  you  give  me  one  ?  '  I  gave 
him  one,  and  by  that  time  there  was  about  me  quite  a  crowd  of 
men  who  were  off  duty  (I  was  below  in  their  quarters),  and  they 
all  wanted  the  books.  From  that  time  I  gave  away  fifty  books  a 
day  until  they  were  all  gone.  One  night  I  heard  some  one  at  my 
window.  I  sprang  up,  thinking  it  was  a  marine  after  a  drink  of 
ice-water  ;  but,  to  my  surprise,  a  sailor  was  standing  there  in  the 
dark,  like  Nicodemus.  He  said,  with  some  hesitation,  'Chaplain, 
I  am  after  one  of  those  little  Bibles.'" 

All  this  evangelistic  work  was  directed  by  Mr.  Moody  from  ,J 
Northfield.  His  health  made  it  inadvisable  for  him  to  go  to  the 
front  during  the  summer  heat,  so  he  planned  to  take  the  field  in 
person  in  the  autumn.  But  when  the  autumn  came  the  war  v/as 
over,  and  his  presence  was  no  longer  necessary.  To  him,  however, 
belongs  the  credit  of  organization. 

The  Army  and  Navy  Y.   M.   C.  A. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war,  the  International  Committee 
undertook  the  task  to  which  it  had  been  manifestly  called,  with  but 
little,  if  any,  thought  of  the  far-reaching  possibilities  of  the  future. 
When  the  war  closed  it  was  evident  that  a  door  of  opportunity  had 
been  opened  for  a  permanent  service  to  a  large  and  important  class 
of  young  men.  Accepting  the  responsibility  of  the  situation,  the 
International  Committee  voted  to  make  the  work,  so  auspiciously 
begun,  a  permanent  feature  of  its  plan  and  effort,  and  in  September 
1898,  its  Army  and  Navy  Department  was  organized.  The  ninety- 
seven  army  posts  in  this  country,  and  such  as  may  be  established  in  the 
new  possessions,  will  form  a  field  for  extended  effort,  and  already  in 


1 88  MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO   WARS 

several  of  these,  associations  have  been  organized.  The  regimental 
plan  of  organization  is  also  being  tested  with  good  results.  A  compre- 
hensive plan  of  work  covering  the  entire  Navy  has  already  been  in- 
augurated.     A  Naval  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  has  been 

formed. 

Striking  Illustrations 

The  following  incidents  illustrate  the  value  of  the  evangelistic 
work  during  the  war  with  Spain. 

"  I'll  never  surrender  to  Spain,"  said  a  great  stalwart  soldier, 
"but,  boys,  I'm  going  to  surrender  to  Jesus  Christ  to-night." 
What  that  meant  in  the  way  of  moral  courage  few  can  understand, 
facing  as  he  did  the  jibes  and  sneers  of  his  old  companions. 

At  the  close  of  a  meeting  in  Camp  Thomas  theatre  three 
soldiers  came  to  an  association  worker  and  said  that  a  man  who  had 
been  converted  a  week  before  was  sick,  and  wanted  to  see  them. 
They  went  up  to  his  tent,  and  found  him  suffering  terribly,  but  re- 
joicing that  he  had  accepted  Christ.  He  said  several  times,  "  Well, 
I've  lived  right  one  week,  anyway." 

A  young  soldier  from  one  of  the  Texas  regiments  was  reproved 
gently  by  the  camp  secretary  for  swearing  and  he  immediately  arose 
and  apologized,  saying  :  "  I  don't  know  why  I  utter  these  oaths 
except  that  I  am  living  in  an  atmosphere  of  obscenity  and  cursing  ; 
I  never  swore  at  home  ;  I  trust  you  will  forgive  me,  sir ;  I  did  not 
realize  that  you  were  present." 

It  was  at  the  close  of  the  service  in  the  Third  Brigade  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association  tent,  Camp  Cuba  Libre,  Jacksonville,/ 
Florida.  A  hundred  soldiers  had  risen  for  prayers,  and  at  least 
fifty  had  come  forward  and  given  their  hands  in  token  of  a  surren- 
der to  Christ  as  a  personal  Saviour.  The  benediction  had  been 
pronounced  when  a  bright-faced  Virginia  boy,  nineteen  years  old, 
came  to  the  platform  and  said  :  "Won't  you  pray  for  me,  sir?  I  want 


MR.  MOODY  IN  TWO  WARS  189 

to  be  a  Christian  here  in  camp."  They  knelt  together,  and  others 
gathered  around  until  twenty  noble  fellows  were  in  the  group  of 
prayer.  Nearly  all  confessed  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  in  prayer  and 
went  down  to  their  tents  rejoicing. 

"  God  Keep  us  From  War  " 

From  the  activity  which  Mr.  Moody  displayed  in  the  two  wars 
which  were  fousfht  durinof  his  workincr  career,  it  mipfht  be  thought 
that  he  was  not  averse  to  international  conflicts.  This  was  far  from 
true.  It  was  simply  that  when  war  came  he  saw  in  it,  and  took 
advantage  of  an  opportunity  to  do  good.  Just  before  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Spanish  war,  in  a  meeting  at  Pittsburg,  he  told 
his  hearers  what  he  thouofht  of  war. 

"  War,  awful  war  ! "  he  exclaimed,  "  Never  has  our  country 
had  more  need  of  your  prayers  than  at  the  present  time.  God  keep 
us  from  war,  if  it  be  possible,  and  God  keep  hate  of  Spain  out  of 
our  hearts  !  I  have  not  met  a  man  who  served  in  the  last  war  who 
wants  to  see  another.  God  knows  that  I  do  not  want  to  see  the 
carnage  and  destruction  that  such  a  war  would  bring.  God  pity 
America  and  Spain.  There  are  many  mothers  who  will  be  bereaved, 
many  homes  broken  up,  if  we  have  war.  Have  you  thought  of 
this  ?  " 

"  Have  you  thought  of  this  ?"  No  ;  in  the  heat  of  prepara- 
tion, in  our  eagerness  to  avenge  a  wronged  people,  in  all  the  excite- 
ment of  what  seemed  to  be  a  Divine  call  to  arms,  many  of  us  did 
not  think  of  this.  But  the  great,  tender  heart  of  Moody  ached  with 
the  sorrow  of  anticipation.  He  knew  that  nations  are  nourished 
by  the  rain  of  mothers'  tears  ;  he  knew  that  sad-faced  fathers  to-day, 
like  Abraham  of  old,  stand  ready  to  offer  up  their  sons  on  their 
country's  altar.  And  with  a  pity — dare  I  say  it  ? — a  pity  akin  to  the 
pity  of  his  Master,  he  yearned  for  his  people. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  Spiritual  Side  of    Northfield. 

NORTHFIELD  is  beautiful  for  situation,  and  the  words  of 
the  Psalmist  in  Psalm  xlviii :  2,  "  Beautiful  for  situation,  the 
joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  Mount  Zion,"  in  the  judgment 
of  many  people  could  be  applied  to  this  center  of  influence  in  the 
Christian  world  of  to-day. 

It  is  impossible  to  think  of  Northfield  without  thinking  of  Mr. 
Moody,  and  equally  impossible  to  consider  for  a  moment  the  work 
of  D.  L.  Moody,  without  being  compelled  to  give  much  considera- 
tion to   his   native   town,  the  place  he  loved   as  few  men  love  the 

place  of  their  birth. 

A  Beautiful  Place 

Independent  of  its   spiritual  attractions,   there  are   few  more 

beautiful   places ;   the  Connecticut   River,  bending  here  and  there 

between  hill  and  vale,  is  more  than  interesting.     The  poet  speaks 

of  "  rivers  singing  their  way  to  the  sea  ;"  one  can  quite  understand 

how  this  expression  could  be  used  in  this  connection,  for  we  quite 

believe  that  it  would  be  true  of  the  Connecticut.     And  if  the  river 

itself  could  speak  it  would  tell  many  a  story  of  lives  that  from 

Northfield  have  sung  their  way  on  up  to  Heaven,  and  have  started 

the   melody  of  song  in   many  other  lives  as  well.      It  is  said  that 

Mr.  Moody  loved  the  view   from  his  own  house  better  than   from 

almost  any  other  point  of    observation,  and  well  he  might.      Dr. 

Gordon  once  wrote  of  him,  "  Moody  cannot  endure  the  seashore  ; 

his  green  fields  and  ever  shadowy  hills  and  deep-rolling  Connecticut 

are  his  paradise." 
190 


THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD  193 

Northfield  is  a  typical  New  England  town.  It  consists  practi- 
cally of  one  long  street,  on  either  side  of  which  stand  stately  elms, 
their  branches  meeting  overhead  and  forming  an  arch,  which  has 
ever  increasing  beauty  for  the  lovers  of  the  quaint  old  town.  It 
has  ever  been  a  very  winsome  place  both  because  of  the  fact  that 
it  is  so  far  removed  from  the  busy  hum  of  cities  as  to  make  it  rest- 
ful, and  also  because  here  within  the  boundaries  of  the  town  so 
many  people  have  seen  themselves  to  be  out  of  touch  with  God 
and  have  come  to  know  Him  in  all  His  fulness,  and  thus  have 
entered  the  life  of  blessing. 

Northfield  Dear  to  Mr.   Moody 

But  Northfield  was  dear  to  Mr.  Moody  for  more  reasons  than 
one,  and  I  am  quite  sure  that  he  never  thought  of  It,  that  there 
Jvere  not  more  than  a  hundred  reasons  why  it  should  be  much  to  ■ 
him.  He  used  to  say  that  when  the  train  left  Greenfield,  which 
was  not  far  away  from  his  own  home,  he  found  himself  so  impa- 
tient to  be  with  his  loved  ones  that  It  was  impossible  to  sit  still, 
and  so  he  would  frequently  walk  up  and  down  the  aisle  of  the  car 
until  he  was  safely  home. 

The  center  of  Northfield,  to  the  pilgrim   journeying  thither 
from  all  parts  of  the  world,  was  the  home  of  Mr.  Moody  himself, 
and  the  visit   to   that   home,  and  a  vision   of  it,  both   within  and  ; 
without,  furnished  one  of  the  best  comments  on  his  life.     Here; 
dwelt  a  man  through  whose  hands  millions  of  dollars  had  passed,  \ 
and   practically  none  of  It,  though  he  had  the  best   of  right  to  a 
portion  of    it,  both  legally  and  morally  was  turned  aside  to  give  ' 
him  what  the  world  would  count  luxuries.     Tens  of  thousands  of  1 
homes  are  more   beautifully  and   expensively  furnished,  but  there  i 
was  an  air  about  this  heart  of  Northfield  which  one  detected  the  | 
moment  he  crossed  the  threshold  of  the  home — an  air  not  of  necessity 


194  THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD 

associated  with  tapestries  or  pictures  or  paintings  or  furnish- 
ings ordinarily  found  in  the  homes  of  the  rich,  but  which  ever 
comes,  when  Christ  is  the  unseen  guest  and  the  head  of  the  house, 

Is  IT  Any  Wonder  That  he  Loved  Northfield? 

The  old  home  was  much  to  the  Great  Evangelist  because  it' 
was  his  home.  It  was  associated  with  his  early  struggles  with 
poverty,  with  his  father  and  mother,  so  dear  to  him,  with  his  own 
immediate  household,  bound  to  him,  it  would  seem,  with  ties 
stronger  than  those  that  ordinarily  unite  the  members  of  the 
family ;  with  the  students  whom  he  loved  and  whom  it  was  his 
delight  to  help  to  gain  an  education.  It  was  the  scene  of  the  be- 
ginning and  the  growth  of  the  Bible  Conferences,  which  have 
yearly  increased  in  influence  and  power  until  the  whole  Christian 
world  acknowledges  its  indebtedness  to  God  for  this  fountain  of 
blessing.  There,  at  Mt.  Hermon,  the  site  of  the  boys'  school,  was 
started  the  Student  Volunteer  movement,  which  has  been  used  of 
God  to  send  hundreds  of  young  men  and  women  to  foreign  fields, 
and  influenced  hundreds  more  who  now  stand  waiting  for  an  oppor- 
tunity to  go.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  Mr.  Moody  loved  Northfield  ? 
We  love  it  too  because  it  is  associated  with  his  triumphs.  "Tri- 
umphs over  the  obstacles  which  stood  in  the  way  of  his  buying 
back  his  old  home  which  had  been  lost  by  his  father's  failure  in 
business.  Triumphs  over  the  discouragements  that  stood  in  the 
way  of  his  giving  an  education  to  boys  and  girls  who  were  poor,  as 
he  once  had  been  ;  discouragements  that  would  have  defeated  any 
other  man,  and  at  last  the  scene  of  the  triumphant  and  victorious 
ending  of  his  life  and  his  glorious  entrance  into  Heaven  when  he 
said,  "  Earth  is  receding,  Heaven  is  opening,  God  is  calling,  and  I 
I  must  go." 


THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD  195 

Northfield  is  known  throug-hout  the  world  also  because  of  the 
celebrated  people  whose  names  and  words  are  interwoven  in  its 
latter  day  history.  But  whoever  has  visited  Northfield  in  the  past, 
or  whoever  may  turn  his  face  thither  in  the  future,  no  name,  how- 
ever great  it  may  be,  can  ever  outshine  his  of  whom  we  write.  He 
was  the  gentlest,  the  kindest,  the  noblest  Christian  man  it  has 
ever  been  our  good  fortune  to  meet.  One  of  the  most  familiar  j 
Northfield  pictures  was  D.  L.  Moody  sitting  on  the  little  porch  in 
front  of  his  house  early  in  the  morning  hailing  passers-by  in  whom 
he  might  have  some  special  interest,  directing  this  one,  giving  an 
order  to  another  one,  until  he  would  have  transacted  half  a  day's 
business  when  others  were  just  rising  from  their  beds.  I  can  hear, 
his  voice  now  as  I  write,  as  it  sounded  out  one  morning  not  later 
than  5.30  o'clock,  when  I  heard  him  calling,  "Chapman,  Chapman," 
and,  looking  out  of  my  window  of  Weston  Hall,  saw  him  sitting  in 
his  buggy  ready  for  a  drive,  and  then  for  an  hour  and  a  half  we 
rode  up  through  his  favorite  glen  past  Dr.  Pierson's  summer  home, 
and  the  site  where  later  Drs.  Mabie  and  Torrey  were  to  build.       \ 

His  Great  Love  of  Nature 

His  love  of  nature  was  manifest  in  every  turn  of  the  road.  "  Look 
at  that,"  he  would  say,  and  before  us  was  a  beautiful  picture  of  a  run- 
ning stream  and  bending  boughs  of  trees,  through  which  the  morn- 
ing sun  was  breaking.  "  Listen,"  he  would  exclaim  again,  and  the 
whole  of  the  forest  on  either  side  of  the  road  seemed  vocal  with 
the  song  of  birds.  "  Isn't  it  beautiful,"  he  would  say  over  and 
over.  To  take  a  morning  ride  with  D,  L.  Moody  was  to  see  God 
in  all  nature,  but  most  of  all  was  to  feel  His  presence  in  the 
remarkable  personality  of  the  man  who  sat  beside  you,  impressing 
you  by  his  every  word  and  gesture  with  the  fact  that  he  was  abso- 
lutely surrendered  to  God. 


196  THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD 

It  always  seemed  to  me  that  his  favorite  meal  for  guests  was 
breakfast.  Happy  that  man  who  had  an  invitation  to  this  feast  of 
the  day,  for  he  could  then  see  D.  L.  Moody  at  his  best  in  his  home 
life,  and  bow  with  him  about  his  family  altar,  forth  from  which 
streams  of  blessing  had  gone  to  the  very  ends  of  the  earth. 

Northfield  is  associated  with  certain  other  people  whom  Mr. 
Moody  was  wise  enough  to  call  to  his  assistance  and  help.  First 
and  foremost  would  be  Major  D,  W.  Whittle  ;  for  next  to  Mr. 
Moody,  as  a  preaching  evangelist,  stands  Major  Whittle,  a  man  of 
plain  speech  and  solid  piety,  whose  words  have  been  already  owned 
of  God  to  the  awakening  of  thousands  of  souls. 

Major  Whittle  is  a  native  of  Vermont,  is  about  sixty-three 
years  of  age,  and  when  Mr.  Moody  first  met  him  was  a  resident 
of  Chicago,  where  he  was  converted,  and  united  with  the  First 
Congregational  Church,  under  the  pastorate  of  Rev.  W.  W, 
Patton,  D.  D. 

Major  Whittle  was  employed  in  the  office  of  Fargo  &  Co.'s 
Express  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  when  he  enlisted  a 
company  in  Chicago  and  joined  the  army  as  a  captain  of  infantry. 

During  his  army  life  he  mainta  led  his  Christian  profession, 
and  for  a  long  time  kept  up  a  compar.  '  prayer  meeting, 

At  the  close  of  the  war  he  returned  with  the  brevet  rank  of 
major,  and  soon  after  was  offered  a  situation  as  business  manager 
of  the  Elgin  Watch  Cc  npany,  with  a  salary  of  five  thousand  dol- 
lars a  year,  which  he  accepted. 

His  work  as  superintendent  of  the  West  Side  Tabernacle  Sun- 
day School,  a  mission  opened  by  the  first  Congregational  Church, 
was  greatly  blessed,  and  for  some  time  before  his  entrance  upon 
the  work  of  an  evangelist  his  services  were  in  considerable  demand 
as  a  Bible  reader  and  helper  in  revivals  of  religion. 


THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD  197 

At  length  feeling  called  of  God  to  a  wider  field  of  Christian 
labor,  he  resigned  his  position,  with  its  ample  salary,  and  gave  him- 
self wholly  up  to  Christ,  trusting  in  Him  for  direction  and  support. 

Major  Whittle  is  laid  aside  at  Northfield  now,  his  very  presence 
in  the  old  town  meaning  a  blessing  to  many.  His  ministry  too  has 
been  a  benediction  to  all  with  whom  he  has  come  in  contact.  I 
question  if  a  more  godly  man  lives  to-day  than  this  honored  servant. 

Dr.  a.  J.  Gordon 

Next  in  importance,  possibly,  would  be  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon,  the 
honored  pastor  for  so  many  years  of  the  Clarendon  Street  Baptist 
Church  In  Boston.  Mr.  Moody  relied  much  upon  him,  often  did 
the  great  evangelist  dwell  upon  his  readiness  to  do  any  service,  to 
take  any  place,  to  stand  in  any  gap.  "  I  cannot  thank  you  enough," 
he  wrote  one  summer,  when  his  absence  had  thrown  the  whole 
charge  of  the  Conference  upon  Dr.  Gordon,  "  for  your  great  help 
at  Northfield.  All  the  letters  I  have  got  from  there  speak  in  the 
highest  terms  of  your  generalship. 

"  I  know  of  no  one  who  could  have  taken  your  place. 

"  //  will  now  answer  the  question  '  What  is  going  to  become  of 
the  work  when  I  am  gone  ?  '  " 

The  presence  of  such  men  as  these  made  Northfield  a  heavenly 
place  In  its  atmosphere. 

Mr.  Moody  never  displayed  greater  wisdom  than  in  his  selec- 
tion of  men  to  aid  him  in  his  Conferences. 

"  One  of  the  interesting  features  of  Dr.  Gordon's  later  ministry 
at  Northfield  was  the  evening  baptism  in  the  lake  which  has,  since 
his  death,  been  called  after  his  name.  These  services  were  of  great 
solemnity.  The  assembled  people,  the  soft  singing  In  the  eventide 
air,  the  majestic  baptismal  formula  'Know  ye  not  that  so  many  of 
us  as  were  baptized  into  Jesus  Christ  were  baptized  into  his  death?' 


198  THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD 

the  face  as  it  had  been  the  face  of  an  angel,  the  broken  waters,  and 
the  resurrection  chant  at  the  end — these  things  can  never  be  for- 
gotten by  those  who  stood  by  the  water's  edge." 

Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer  of  London 

Certainly  no  one  has  ever  visited  Northfield  who  has  made  a 
deeper  impression  by  his  ministry,  than  the  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer.  He 
is  now  the  minister  of  Christ  Church,  London,  having  succeeded  in 
that  historic  pulpit  Rev,  Newman  Hall,  D.  D,,  but  he  is  known  in 
this  country,  because  of  the  fact  that  he  has  led,  by  the  direction  of 
the  Spirit,  thousands  of  people  into  the  joys  of  the  surrendered  life, 
and  Mr.  Moody  will  doubtless  hear  in  Heaven  words  of  appreciation 
of  the  fact  that  he  ever  secured  Mr.  Meyer  for  his  Northfield  work. 

Time  does  not  permit  in  this  connection  to  mention  the  names 
of  MacGregor  and  Morgan,  Andrew  Murray,  Dr.  Webb-Peploe  and 
hundreds  of  others  of  the  real  leaders  in  the  Christian  world  to-day. 
They  have  counted  it  an  honor  to  visit  Northfield  and  give  the  very 
best  of  their  thought  to  help  carry  on  a  movement  which  was  mani- 
festly of  God. 

There  are  many  special  incidents  which  have  made  Northfield 
blessed  in  its  memory.  One  is  related  by  Mr.  George  C.  Need- 
ham,  of  the  sainted  A.  J.  Gordon  of  Clarendon  Street  Church. 

"  Dr.  Gordon,  unlike  some  Christians,  believed  there  was 
something  always  beyond.  This  he  ever  sought  to  attain.  Some 
years  ago,  during  the  first  Northfield  convention,  he  was  desirous 
to  secure  what  he  yet  needed  as  a  saint  and  servant  of  Christ. 
Toward  the  close  of  those  memorable  ten  days,  spent  more  in 
prayer  than  in  preaching,  my  beloved  friend  joined  me  in  a  mid- 
night hour  of  great  heart-searching  and  in-filling  of  the  Spirit.  He 
read  with  peculiar  tenderness  our  Lord's  intercessory  prayer  of 
John  xvii.     The  union  of  the  believer  with  Christ  and  the  Father, 


THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD  199 

as  taught  by  our  Lord  in  that  chapter,  called  out  fervent  exclama- 
tions, while  with  deep  pathos  he  continued  reading.  During  united 
prayer  which  followed,  the  holy  man  poured  his  soul  with  a  freedom 
and  unction  indescribable.  I  never  heard  him  boast  of  any  spiritual 
attainment  reached  during  that  midnight  hour,  ^oul  experiences 
were  to  him  very  sacred,  and  not  to  be  rehearsed  on  every  ordinary 
occasion.  But  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  received  then  a  divine 
touch  which  further  ennobled  his  personal  life  and  made  his  ministry 
of  ever-increasing  spirituality  and  of  ever-widening  breadth  of 
sympathy." 

A  Star  in   the  Midnight   Darkness 

One  incident  connected  with  my  own  Christian  experience  can 
never  be  effaced  from  my  memory.  I  was  seated  in  my  country 
home  reading  the  accounts  of  the  Northfield  conferences,  before  I 
had  ever  thought  of  attending  the  same,  when  one  sentence  in  an 
address  delivered  by  Mr.  Meyer  arrested  my  attention.  It  was 
concerning  the  life  of  surrender,  and  the  sentence  was  as  follows : 
"  If  you  are  not  willing  to  give  up  everything  to  God,  then  can  you 
say,  /  am  willing  to  be  made  willing?'''  It  was  like  a  star  in  the 
midnight  darkness  of  my  life  and  led  to  a  definite  surrender  of 
myself  in  October  1892,  But  after  that  there  were  still  some  dis- 
couragements and  times  of  depression,  and  standing  one  morning 
very  early  in  front  of  Mr.  Moody's  house  with  the  Rev.  F.  B. 
Meyer,  I  said  to  him,  "  Mr  Meyer,  what  is  my  difficulty  ?"  I  told  him 
of  my  definite  surrender  and  pointed  out  to  him  my  times  of  weak- 
ness and  discouragement,  and  in  a  way  which  is  peculiar  to  himself 
he  made  answer,  "  My  brother,  your  difficulty  is  doubtless  the  same  \ 
as  the  one  I  met.  Have  you  ever  tried  to  breathe  out  six  times 
without  breathing  in  once  ?"  Thoughtlessly  I  tried  to  do  it  and 
then  learned  that  one  never  breathes  out  until  he  breathes  in,  that 
his  breathing  out  is  in  proportion  to  his  breathing  in ;   that  he 


200  THE  SPIRITUAL  SIDE  OF  NORTHFIELD 

makes  his  effort  to  breathe  in  and  none  to  breathe  out.  Taking  my 
hand  in  his,  my  distinguished  friend  said,  "  it  is  just  so  in  one's  Chris- 
tian Hfe,  we  must  be  constantly  breathing  in  of  God,  or  we  shall  fail," 
and  he  turned  to  make  his  way  to  Mr.  Moody's  house  for  breakfast 
while  I  hastened  up  to  my  room  in  Weston  Hall  thanking  God  that  I 
had  had  a  message  better  to  me  than  any  sermon  I  had  ever  heard. 

Such  incidents  as  these  in  the  lives  of  thousands  of  ministers 
make  Northfield  a  place  delightful  to  visit  and  Northfield  meetings 
a  benediction, 

A  very  wealthy  family,  the  father  and  mother  of  which  had 
been  frequent  visitors  at  Northfield,  could  never  induce  the  young 
ladies  of  their  home  to  go  with  them,  their  idea  of  a  Bible  confer- 
ence being  such  that  they  considered  it  a  poor  way  to  spend  a 
vacation  ;  but  one  summer,  because  of  the  description  of  the  beauty 
of  the  scenery,  they  consented  to  go.  They  were  seated  one  morn- 
ing on  the  piazza  of  the  Northfield  Hotel  with  Mr.  Meyer,  when 
something  in  his  conversation  led  them  to  say  that  they  would  hear 
him  preach  that  morning.  The  power  of  God  came  upon  one  of 
the  young  ladies  and  she  returned  to  her  room  only  to  fall  upon 
her  knees  and  definitely  yield  herself  to  God.  She  returned  to 
her  home  to  engage  most  actively  in  Christian  service.  Shortly 
after  her  return  she  was  taken  ill  and  died,  and  before  her  death 
she  called  her  mother  to  her  room  to  say  to  her  that  she  wanted 
her  to  call  to  her  room,  before  the  funeral,  every  girl  whom  she 
had  ever  known  intimately  and  socially  and  to  tell  them  that  in 
the  little  time  she  had  known  Christ  fully  she  had  had  more  joy 
than  in  all  her  social  life  put  together. 

This  is  but  one  incident  among  thousands  that  could  be  related 
concerning  the  influence  of  Northfield.  Is  it  strange,  therefore, 
that  many  who  love  it  can  say  as  the  Psalmist  said  of  Zion, 
"  Beautiful  for  situation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  is  Northfield.  " 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Northfield  Schools 

A  FAVORITE  aphorism  with  Mr.  Moody  was,  that  "it  is 
better  to  set  ten  men  to  work  than  to  do  the  work  of  ten 
men  ",  and  his  institutions  were  every  one  of  them  founded 
with  this  idea  in  mind.  He  ever  had  a  great  desire  more  thoroughly 
to  equip  young  men  and  women  that  they  might  more  properly  do 
the  work  to  which  God  had  called  them.  In  one  sense  Mr.  Moody 
was  not  an  educated  man,  for,  so  far  as  the  schools  were  concerned, 
he  had  the  scantiest  equipment  for  his  life  work.  This  was  always 
a  source  of  sincere  sorrow  to  him,  and  he  determined  that  others 
should  not  meet  this  difficulty  if  he  could  prevent  it,  yet  in  the 
very  widest  sense  he  was  most  thoroughly  educated,  and  it  was 
entirely  fitting  that  Professor  Henry  Drummond  should  speak  of 
him  as  "one  of  the  greatest  educators  of  his  day." 

His  Truly  Marvelous   Educational  Work 

There   is   really  no  greater  proof  of  Mr.    Moody's  breadth  of 

mind  than  that  he  should  have  started  these  different  institutions. 

I  think  he  is  the  only  evangelist  in  this  country  that  has  ever,  to  any 

great  extent,  concerned  himself  with   such  matters,  and   since  he  is 

easily  the  greatest  evangelist  -that  this  country  has    produced  in 

modern  times,  it  is  all  the  more  remarkable   that  in  the  very   prime 

of  his  life,  and  at  the  time  when  he  was  really  at  the  height  of  his 

success  as  an  evangelist,  he  should  give  so  much  of  his  strength  to 

educational  causeso 

(203) 


204  THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS 

If  there  ever  has  been  a  disposition  to  criticise  Mr.  Moody's 
latter  day  evangelistic  effort,  such  criticism  should  always  be 
made  in  the  light  of  his  truly  marvellous  educational  work.  Per- 
sonally I  do*  not  think  that  he  is  rightly  a  subject  for  unfavorable 
criticism  in  his  last  efforts  along  evangelistic  lines,  for  whenever  I 
heard  him,  even  to  the  very  last,  he  always  seemed  to  have  a  special 
anointing  of  God  upon  him.  But  I  have  heard  men  say  that  his 
special  efforts  in  his  last  days  were  not  to  be  compared  with  the 
work  of  his  earlier  ministry.  However,  let  me  repeat  again,  that  if 
to  his  evangelistic  work  you  add  his  educational  interests,  then  each 
succeeding  day  of  D.  L.  Moody's  life  was  greater  than  the  day 
that  preceded  it,  and  he  was  at  the  very  zenith  of  his  power  when 
God  called  him  home.  He  knew  that  the  object  of  Christianity 
was  to  make  men  and  women  better  in  every  way,  and  fit  them,  not 
only  with  all  their  heart  but  with  all  their  mind  to  serve  their  God 
and  their  country,  so  he  founded  these  institutions  for  the  turning 
out  of  such  characters. 

Henry  Drummond  has  said,  "  his  pupils  should  be  com- 
mitted to  nothing  as  regards  a  future  profession.  They  might 
become  ministers  or  missionaries,  evangelists  or  teachers,  farmers 
or  politicians,  business  men  or  lawyers  ;  all  that  he  would  secure 
would  be  that  they  should  have  a  chance  of  becoming  useful, 
educated,  God-fearing  men  and  women."  But  he  would  help 
them  if  he  could  to  fill  these  positions  to  the  glory  of  God. 

NORTHFIELD    MaDE    HiS    PERMANENT    RESIDENCE 

On  his  return  to  America  from  Great  Britain,  Mr.  Moody 
went  with  his  family  to  the  home  of  his  boyhood  days.  He 
decided  to  make  Northfield  his  permanent  place  of  residence,  and 
he  settled  down  to  enjoy  a  period  of  rest  before  he  formed  new 
plans  for  work.     It  was  a  time  of  real  preparation  for  the  future, 


THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS  205 

and  the  history  of  to-day  proves  that  God  was  as  truly  speaking  to 
him  then  as  to  Moses  when  He  was  alone  with  him  on  the  mountain. 
During  journeys  over  the  hills  about  his  native  town,  he  met  many  of 
the  farmers'  daughters,  bright,  intelligent  girls,  with  ambitions  ex- 
tending beyond  the  routine  of  the  farm-house  drudgery.  They 
appealed  so  strongly  to  him  that  he  conceived  the  plan  of  a  school 
where  such  girls,  possessed  of  moderate  means,  might  receive  a 
careful  training  in  the  Bible  and  ordinary  English  branches.  This 
was  the  seed  thought,  and  out  of  it  has  grown  the  Northfield  Semi- 
nary, Mt.  Hermon,  and  the  Northfield  Training  School. 

Purchase  of  Ground  and  Opening  of  the  School 

It  has  been  said  that  this  educational  idea  was  not  alone  D.  L. 
Moody's.  A  brother,  not  now  living,  Samuel  Moody,  an  active,  in- 
telligent man,  had  long  desired  the  establishment  of  a  High  School 
in  his  native  place,  and  frequently  talked  of  it.  There  is  still  another 
thing  that  should  be  mentioned.  At  this  time  Mr.  D.  L.  Moody 
was  deeply  interested  in  the  education  of  a  young  lady  cousin, 
whom  he  afterward  sent  to  Wellesley  College.  This  cousin.  Miss 
Fanny  C.  Holton,  died  in  February,  1887,  but  her  character,  influ- 
ence and  helpfulness  had  a  most  important  relation  to  the  origin  of 
the  Northfield  Seminary  and  to  its  entire  history.  In  1887,  Mr. 
Moody  held  meetings  in  Boston,  and  there  met  Mr.  H.  N.  F. 
Marshall,  who  was  intimately  connected  with  the  founding  of  both 
schools.  It  was  Mr.  Marshall  who  made  the  first  purchase  of 
ground  for  the  school. 

In  1878,  Mr.  Marshall  first  visited  Northfield,  and  this  visit  led 
to  the  above-mentioned  purchase  of  the  sixteen  acres  of  ground 
nearly  opposite  Mr.  Moody's  house.  In  1878  and  1879,  while  Mr. 
Moody  was  working  in  Baltimore,  Mr.  Marshall  again  joined 
him,  and  the   project   of  the   school   for  young  ladies   was   further 


2o6  THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS 

discussed.  A  second  lot  of  ground  was  purchased  adjoining  the  first, 
and  on  this  the  first  recitation  building  was  erected.  In  1879, 
during  the  summer,  Mr.  Moody  altered  his  own  house  for  the 
accommodations  of  the  pupils.  A  long  wing,  adjoining  the  house, 
was  divided  into  ten  rooms  for  the  accommodation  of  the  students. 
November  3,  1879,  the  school  opened,  not  with  eight  or  ten  pupils, 
as  they  had  dared  to  hope,  but  with  twenty-five,  and  until  the  reci- 
tation hall  was  finished,  in  December,  the  pupils  studied  in  Mr. 
Moody's  own  home.  Miss  Harriet  W.  Tuthill  came  as  the  first 
teacher  and  principal  of  the  school.  The  price  charged  to  every 
pupil  then,  as  now,  was  but  $100,  and  applications  came  pouring  in 
from  all  parts  of  the  country. 

Three  Great  Ends  in  View 

In  this  work  of  education  there  were  three  great  ends  which 
occupied  Mr.  Moody's  thought  in  addition  to  the  natural  educa- 
tional advantages.  The  first  had  to  do  with  a  better  Biblical  educa- 
tion, and  his  great  object  was  to  help  and  encourage  them,  and  fit 
them  in  the  best  way  for  a  happy  and  useful  life,  to  bring  them  in 
close  contact  with  the  Fountain  of  Life,  from  which  they  might  draw 
freely  for  all  their  needs.  The  second  end  in  view  was  to  meet  the 
demand  for  trained  women  who  would  devote  themselves  to  mis- 
sionary work,  either  at  home  or  abroad,  but  more  particularly 
among  the  poor  of  the  great  cities.  But  a  third  object  in  founding 
the  school  was  that  the  buildings  which  should  be  erected  for  pur- 
poses of  education  should  be  available  during  the  summer  and  va- 
cation months  for  another  use.  They  could  be  used  for  gatherings 
of  persons  who  delighted  to  study  the  Bible,  and  also  to  confer 
concerning  matters  touching  the  Kingdom  of  Christ.  Mr.  Moody 
lived  long  enough  to  see  these  three  ends  more  than   fulfilled,  and 


THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS  207 

great  numbers  of  young  women  the  country  over  bless  God  that  he 
was  ever  used  to  Inaugurate  such  a  work  in  their  behalf. 

On  the  first  day  of  April,  1880,  ground  was  broken  for 
East  Hall,  and  on  the  first  of  October  the  building  was  finished. 
It  became  the  home  for  sixty-three  students.  When  the  Hall  was 
opened  Mr.  Moody  said,  "  I  would  like  to  give  this  Hall  a  motto, 
and  let  it  also  be  the  motto  of  the  school.  Isaiah  xxvii :  3  :  'I, 
the  Lord  do  keep  it ;  I  will  water  it  every  moment ;  lest  any  hurt 
it,  I  will  keep  it  night  and  day.'  "  When  this  remark  was  made  he 
committed  the  building  and  school,  in  a  special  prayer,  to  the  con- 
tinual service  and  never-failing  care  of  God. 

Constantly   Increasing 

The  second  year  of  the  Seminary  began,  with  East  Hall  well 
filled,  and  a  large  number  of  day  scholars,  while  the  third  year 
opened  with  every  room  that  was  obtainable  more  than  crowded. 
Not  only  was  this  building  used,  but  while  Mr.  Moody  was  absent 
in  Great  Britain,  his  own  house  was  given  up  entirely  to  the  use  of 
the  school.  The  school  has  always  been  much  like  a  home,  and  the 
spirit  of  happiness  and  harmony,  which  is  the  real  spirit  of  Christ, 
has  always  prevailed. 

The  fourth  year  of  the  Seminary  began  with  a  new  dormitory. 
The  building  was  named  Bonar  Hall,  in  memory  of  the  visit  made 
to  Northfield  by  Dr.  Andrew  Bonar.  This  structure  was  after- 
ward destroyed  by  fire.  The  school  was  constantly  increasing  in 
numbers  and  widening  its  influence.  In  1885,  Marquand  Hall  was 
formally  opened.  At  the  same  time  was  celebrated  the  eightieth 
birthday  of  Mrs,  Betsey  Moody,  and  the  forty-eighth  birthday  of  her 
son  D.  L.  Moody,  In  1886,  the  corner-stone  was  laid  of  another 
dormitory,  holding  forty-five  pupils.  It  was  finished  in  the  summer 
of  1887  at  a  cost  of    $25,000,  and  bears  the  name  of  Weston  Hall. 


2o8  THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS 

It  was  this  Hall  that  was  set  apart  for  the  use  of  the  New  York 
Presbytery  at  the  last  meeting  of  the  Northfield  Conference.  In 
the  spring  of  1887,  the  Talcott  Library  was  built,  the  gift  of 
James  Talcott,  of  New  York,  a  trustee  of  the  school,  and  the  Rev. 
Mark  Guy  Pearse,  of  England,  made  an  address  on  this  occasion. 
But  even  though  the  buildings  were  constantly  increasing,  and  were 
not  at  all  small  in  their  dimensions,  each  succeeding  year  found  them 
filled  to  overflowing,  until  in  the  ninth  year  there  were  252  boarding 
pupils  and  eighteen  teachers. 

Present  Condition  of  the  Seminary 

In  the  judgment  of  many  of  his  friends  D.  L.  Moody  never 
performed  a  more  important  service  than  when  he  gave  to  the 
world  the  Northfield  Seminary.  Other  buildings  than  those 
mentioned  above  have  been  erected,  until  to-day  the  school  possesses 
as  many  dormitories  as  any  girls'  school  in  the  country.  In  addition 
it  has  the  Skinner  Gymnasium,  and  the  new  Auditorium  built  by 
Mr.  Moody  in  1894,  to  accommodate  the  increasing  crowd  at  the 
summer  conferences.  The  buildings  all  possess  a  wide  degree  of 
artistic  beauty.  The  270  acres  belonging  to  the  Seminary  show 
good  results  from  the  time  and  money  expended  on  them.  The 
hillside,  once  so  desolate,  is  covered  with  a  beautiful  turf.  Well 
built  roads  wind  through  the  grounds  and  from  ten  to  twenty  men 
are  kept  constantly  employed.  The  entire  production  of  the  farm, 
with  the  exception  of  a  few  apples,  are  used  by  the  farm  or  the 
school.  While  the  price  of  board  and  tuition  at  the  Seminary 
from  the  outset  has  been  $100  a  year,  as  before  mentioned,  yet  it 
must  not  be  supposed  that  this  pays  for  the  education  of  the  girls. 
In  point  of  fact  it  covers  not  more  than  one-half  the  running 
expenses  of  the  school.  The  other  half  Mr.  Moody  became 
responsible  for,  and  he  toiled  day  and  night,  early  and  late,  that  he 


THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS  209 

might   make  the  education  of  these  girls  possible,  and  the  schools 
a  success. 

I  am  very  sure  that  no  one  could  ever  invest  his  money  better 
than  to  help  in  the  memorial  endowment  fund  which  is  now  being 
solicited  throughout  the  country,  that  Mr.  Moody's  work  may  be 
perpetuated  and  grow  in  increasing  usefulness. 

Mt.    Hermon 

The  plan  for  a  school  where  boys  could  have  a  training  in 
elementary  English  branches  and  also  the  Bible,  really  dates  back 
to  Mr.  Moody's  mission  work  in  Chicago,  and  he  never  abandoned 
his  purpose.  Four  miles  distant  from  the  Young  Ladies'  Seminary, 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  the  Mt.  Hermon  buildings, 
composing  the  Mt.  Hermon  School  for  young  men  are  to  be  found. 
While  the  plan  was  conceived  earlier  it  was  carried  out  later  than 
that  of  the  Northfield  Seminary,  but  it  is  not  to  be  placed  second 
in  point  of  influence  ;  side  by  side  these  two  institutions  have  come 
along  together  to  positions  of  influence  and  power. 

In  1880  the  ground  for  Mt.  Hermon  was  purchased.  Through 
the  generosity  of  Mr.  Hiram  Camp  Mr.  Moody  was  fortunately 
able  to  secure  his  farms,  and  subsequent  purchases  have  put  the 
boys'  school  in  possession  of  more  than  700  acres  of  ground.  The 
price  of  board  and  tuition  is  the  same  as  at  the  girls'  school,  and  it 
was  Mr.  Moody's  plan  to  have  the  work  of  the  house  and  the 
farm  performed  by  the  boys  themselves.  For  two  years  the  school 
numbered  not  more  than  twenty-five  boys,  the  ages  ranging  from 
eio-ht  to  eiehteen.  Two  farm  houses  served  as  dormitories  and  a 
small  buildinof  was  erected  to  serve  as  a  schoolhouse.  It  was  soon 
decided  that  better  results  would  be  obtained  by  admitting  only 
older  boys,  and  the  minimum  age  of  admission  was  made  sixteen. 
In  1882  five  brick  cottages  were  built,  four  of  which  were  used  as 


2IO  THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS 

dormitories,  and  the  middle  one  designed  to  serve  as  a  kitchen 
from  which  the  meals  were  carried  to  the  other  buildings.  Since 
then  there  have  been  added  a  three-story  recitation  hall,  dining 
hall   and  kitchen,  Crossley  Hall  and  Silliman  Science  Hall. 

Mt.  Hermon  gives  a  good  education  to  boys  who  have  been 
deprived  of  earlier  advantages,  and  who  cannot  attend  more  expen- 
sive schools.  The  industrial  system  of  Mt.  Hermon  tends  to 
exclude  undesirable  students.  In  their  spare  time  boys  are  allowed 
to  do  overwork,  for  which  they  are  paid.  Many  of  the  students 
remain  at  Mt.  Hermon  throughout  the  year  because  they  have  no 
homes,  or  because  they  desire  to  earn  money.  During  the  vaca- 
tion pupils  pay  three  dollars  a  week  for  board.  However,  this  is 
not  paid  in  money  but  in  work. 

The  Educational  Plan  in  Mount  Hermon 

The  educational  plan  in  Mt.  Hermon,  as  in  all  other  insti- 
tutions associated  v/ith  Mr.  Moody's  name,  centres  around  the 
Bible,  and  the  results  are  apparent  in  the  large  number  of  students 
engaged  in  hom.e  and  foreign  missionary  work. 

People  sneered  in  the  beginning  at  the  idea  of  an  uneducated 
evangelist  teaching  the  youth  anything  about  education,  but  as  the 
buildings  rose  one  after  the  other  their  sneers  soon  changed  to 
astonishment,  and  now  one  only  hears  words  of  praise  for  this 
noble  work.  Mr.  Moody  had  the  most  supreme  faith  in  God  as 
touching  this  educational  work  at  Northfield.  He  knew  that  God 
had  laid  it  on  his  heart,  and  was  persuaded  that  He  would  help  him 
to  carry  it  through. 

I  remember  his  telling  at  one  time  an  incident  which  had  to 
do  with  the  completion  of  one  of  the  buildings.  They  were  out 
of  money,  and  the  work  could  not  go  on  unless  the  money  should 
be    provided,    so    he    made    his    way    up    to  his  study,   wrote  the 


THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS  213 

strongest  letter  he  could  to  a  great   business  man,   and  told  him 

that  he  must  have  several  thousand  dollars  at  once.      When  the 

letter  was  finished  he   put  it  on  a  chair  before   him  and  got   down 

upon  his  knees  to  pray  God  that  this  letter  should  accomplish   the 

object  he  had  in   mind.      The  letter  went  on   its  way  and  reached 

the  business  man  in  his  home  as  he  sat  at  the  breakfast  table.      He 

read   it  with   indifference,   and  then   for  some   reason   read   it   the 

second   time,  with   a   little   bit   of  interest.      For   some    reason   he 

could  not  explain  he  read   it   the   third   time,  and   then  went  to  his 

library  and  wrote  a  check    for  the  full  amount,  saying  in  the  letter 

which    accompanied   the  check,  "  for  some  reason   unaccountable  I 

am   unable    to   get   away  from   your   request,  and    I   send  you  my 

check  as  you  desire.       I  am  sending  it  to   you   from   my  home  for 

fear  that   I   might    change  my  mind   when    I    reach    my  place   of 

business." 

Convincing  Incidents 

Incidents  like  this  could  be  multiplied  without  number,  and 
when  one  looks  at  Mt.  Hermon,  studies  its  great  buildings,  familiar- 
izes himself  with  the  number  of  lives  that  have  come  forth  from 
the  school  to  make  the  world  better  and  brighter,  and  then  studies 
the  whole  of  Mr.  Moody's  plant,  his  first  impression  is  one  of 
wonder  and  admiration,  the  second  a  feeling  of  gratitude  that  he 
has  an  object  lesson  proving  the  truth  that,  if  God  only  has  His 
way  with  His  own,  the  day  of  miracles  is  not  past. 

I  wish  I  might  put  into  this  chapter  an  appeal  to  philanthro- 
pists everywhere  to  support  the  work  of  this  man  who  was  sent 
from  God.  I  am  persuaded  that  the  blessing  of  God  will  be  on  one 
who  in  any  way  answers  the  appeal  sent  forth. 

There  is  a  third  institution  at  Northfield  which  should  not  be 
overlooked.  On  Friday,  June  i,  1888,  "The  Northfield"  was 
opened  to  the  public.   It  is  a  fine  hotel,  designed  expressly  to  meet 


814  THE  NORTHFIELD  SCHOOLS 

the  needs  of  the  many  who  annually  visit  Northfield,  who  attend  the 
sumjner  conferences,  or  as  friends  of  the  two  schools.  It  was  opened 
with  an  overflow  of  guests.  It  was  at  this  hotel  that  the  friends  of  Mr. 
Moody  gathered  on  the  night  preceding  his  funeral  and  the  evening 
following  it,  and  it  is  in  this  hotel  that  the  Moody  Training  School  for 
Women  meets. 

The  Northfield  Training  School 

In  his  work  in  Chicago,  and  in  his  evangelistic  work  throughout 
the  world,  Mr.  Moody  had  learned  to  appreciate  the  especial  influ- 
ence of  women  in  ministering  to  the  poor.  He  also  found  that  it 
was  almost  impossible  to  secure  the  right  standard  of  women  to  do 
the  work  he  had  in  mind.  Sometimes  their  influence  was  marred 
by  inexperience,  more  frequently  by  lack  of  training.  He  deter- 
mined to  start  a  training  school,  which  city  churches  and  mission 
fields  could  draw  upon,  not  for  highly  educated  missionaries,  but  for 
Christian  women  who  could  be  trained  especially  in  Bible  knowl- 
edge and  domestic  economy. 

The  Northfield  Hotel  was  an  eyesore  to  Mr.  Moody  because 
it  was  empty  from  October  to  the  end  of  March.  He  determined 
that  this  should  not  be  so,  and  in  1890,  the  first  term  of  the  train- 
ing school  began  there.  Fifty-six  students  took  up  residence  at 
once,  and  the  next  year  the  numbers  were  quite  doubled.  In  addi- 
tion to  systematic  Bible  study,  the  pupils  are  taught  such  branches 
of  domestic  economy  as  will  make  them  useful  in  their  work  with 
the  poor,  and  they  are  especially  instructed  in  preparation  of  foods 
for  the  sick. 

It  seems  an  incredible  thing  that  a  man  without  education 
himself,  as  the  world  speaks  of  him,  should  have  been  used  of  God 
to  establish  a  work  which  in  many  ways  is  the  wonder  of  all  who 
see  it,  but  it  is  an  illustration  of  the  fact,  that  we  can  do  all  things 
through  Christ  which  strengtheneth  us. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

The  Northfield  Conference  and  the  Student 

Volunteers. 

THIS  is  a  day  in  which  God  is  using  in  a  very  remarkable  way 
what  is  known  as  the  Bible  Conference.  In  many  parts  of 
the  country  there  are  annual  summer  gatherings  of  Chris- 
tian people  for  the  study  of  God's  Word.  The  number  is  rapidly 
increasing,  and  the  growth  of  some  of  these  conferences  is  really 
remarkable.  In  a  sense,  at  least,  the  Northfield  Conference  which 
came  out  of  the  heart  and  the  deep  study  of  D.  L.  Moody,  is 
responsible  for  them  all. 

Various  Bible  Conferences 

There  has  been  annually,  until  within  the  past  two  years,  a 
gathering  of  earnest,  active  Christians  at  Niagara,  on  the  Lake,  and 
some  of  the  most  widely  known  Bible  students  in  the  country  have 
gathered  there  to  consult  together  concerning  the  things  of  the 
Kingdom.  The  teaching  at  this  conference  has  been  largely  along 
dispensation  lines,  and  the  prominent  truth  presented  in  all  their  ser- 
vices has  been  the  return  of  the  Lord,  while  the  majority  of  the 
teachers  at  Northfield  have  not  only  accepted,  but  strongly  advocated 
the  truth  known  as  the  "blessed  hope".  Still  Mr.  Moody  had  one 
characteristic  which  impressed  itself  on  all  his  associates.  He  would 
not  exalt  one  truth  at  the  expense  of  another,  and  so  Northfield  has 
not  been  known  as  the  place  where  any  particular  line  of  truth  was 
promulgated.     If  any  exception  could  be  taken  to  this  statement  it 

(2IS) 


2i6  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

would  be  in  favor  of  those  truths  which  contribute  to   the  deepen- 
ing of  the  spiritual  life. 

Another  widely  known  Bible  Conference,  which  Is  certainly  in 
existence  because  of  the  Influence  of  Northheld,  Is  the  Winona 
gathering  at  Winona  Lake,  Ind.  For  five  years  the  Christians  of 
the  Middle  and  Western  states  in  increasing  numbers  have  gathered 
there  for  the  same  kind  of  work  that  was  done  at  Northfield.  Mr. 
Moody  has  ever  contributed  to  the  effectiveness  of  the  Conference 
by  sending  such  speakers  as  the  Rev.  G.  H.  C.  MacGregor,  the 
Rev.  G.  Campbell  Morgan,  the  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer,  and  the  Rev. 
J.  G.  Cunningham.  The  gathering  has  increased  from  thirty-five, 
the  first  year,  to  more  than  1,500  at  the  last  annual  meeting,  I 
desire  personally  to  say  that  Winona  owes  to  Mr.  Moody  more  than 

it  can  ever  repay. 

The  Keswick  Movement 

One  of  the  most  celebrated  conferences  abroad  is  that  which 
meets  in  the  early  summer  at  Keswick,  a  town  of  Cumberland, 
England,  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Greta,  twenty-four  miles  from 
Carlisle.  The  first  convention  was  held  in  July,  1875,  ^^^  was 
only  for  the  purpose  of  experiencing  a  fuller  spiritual  life.  It  has 
been  thought  by  many  that  the  Keswick  movement  stood  for  the 
promotion  of  the  doctrine  of  "  sinless  perfection  ".  This  is  most 
untrue.  It  does  stand  for  the  very  highest  type  of  Christian  living, 
and  in  every  way  stands  for  the  exaltation  and  manifestation  of 
Christ  in  the  life.  There  are  six  successive  stages  that  ought  to 
be  indicated  in  connection  with  Keswick,  for  they  have  widely 
influenced  the  Northfield  teachers,  especially  those  from  abroad. 
They  are  named  in  the  order  of  their  importance. 

1.  The  definite  and  immediate  abandonment  of  every  known 
sin  or  hindrance  to  holy  living. 


THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE  217 

2.  The  abandonment  and  renunciation  by  faith  of  the  self- 
life,  or  the  life,  that  centers  in  self-indulgence  and  self-dependence. 

3.  The  immediate  surrender  of  the  will  in  loving  and  com- 
plete obedience  to  the  will  of  God,  separation  for  the  purpose  of 
consecration. 

4.  The  infilling  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  or  the  claiming  of  the 
believer's  share  in  the  Spirit's  pentecostal  gift  of  power  for  service. 

5.  The  revelation  of  Christ  as  an  indwelling  presence  in  the 
believer's  soul  and  daily  life,  and  as  his  actual  Master  and  Lord. 

6.  Beyond  these  there  is  always  a  sixth  and  last  stage  of 
teaching — the  privileges  and  victories  implied  in  this  higher  or 
deeper  life,  such  as  the  rest  life  of  faith,  power  over  sin,  passion 
for  souls,  conscious  fellowship  with  God,  growing  possession  of 
promises,  and  prevailing  prayer  and  intercession. 

The   Pre-eminence  of   Northfield 

The  basis  of  all  this  teaching  is,  as  is  very  apparent,  the  con- 
viction that  the  average  Christian  life  is  too  often  grievously  des- 
titute of  real  spiritual  power  and  is  essentially  carnal  ;  and  that  it  is 
the  duty  and  privilege  of  every  child  of  God  to  enter  at  once  into 
newness  of  life,  and  to  walk  henceforth  in  the  power  of  Christ's 
resurrection. 

But  Northfield  is  pre-eminently,  in  the  judgment  of  many  peo- 
ple, the  most  important  gathering  of  Bible  students  in  this  country, 
if  not  in  the  world.  Thousands  of  lives  have  been  transformed,  by 
the  power  of  the  Conference,  and  one  of  the  most  notable  gather- 
ings in  its  history  was  that  of  last  year  when  the  entire  Presbytery 
of  New  York  met  and  were  assigned  to  quarters  in  Weston  Hall, 
attended  regularly  the  services,  and  came  back  literally  filled  with 
the  Spirit  of  God,  the  result  being  that  the  whole  city  of  New  York 
has  seemed  to  feel  the  touch  of  the  power  that  rested  upon  them  ; 
<ind  there  is  scarcely  a  Presbyterian  Church  in  the  city  that  has  not 


2i8  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

had  remarkably  large  additions  as  either  a  direct  or  indirect  result 
of  this  last  summer  Conference. 

However  much  Mr.  Moody's  friends  may  have  to  say  of  him 
in  meetings  in  other  places,  it  is  certainly  true  that  he  was  at  his 
best  in  Northfield  at  the  Conference.  There  was  no  more  inter- 
ested listener  in  all  the  audience  than  he.  He  was  quick  to  notice 
the  impression  the  speakers  made  upon  the  people,  and  while  he 
was  never  what  could  be  called  a  flatterer,  yet  when  those  whom 
he  had  invited  to  be  present  helped  the  people  he  was  the  first  one 
to  express  his  appreciation.  As  a  rule  he  was  at  all  the  gather- 
ings. 

The   Beginning  of  the  Conferences 

A  description  of  the  Northfield  Conferences  necessitates  refer- 
ring once  again  to  the  Round  Top  services,  one  of  which  is 
described  in  another  chapter.  These  meetings  were  held  in  the 
evening,  at  the  sunset  time,  and  the  influence  upon  all  who  gath- 
ered there  was  simply  profound.  I  question  if  there  is  any  work 
that  Mr.  Moody  was  engaged  in  throughout  the  world  in  which  he 
was  more  interested  than  the  Northfield  Conference,  a  brief  story 
of  which  ought  to  be  given. 

The  Northfield  Conferences  began  in  1880.  Early  in  September 
the  buildings  of  the  Seminary  were  thronged  with  three  hundred 
visitors.  Among  those  who  came  was  a  delegation  from  Great 
Britain.  The  first  conference  continued  for  ten  days.  The  spirit 
of  the  meeting  was  largely  devotional,  the  doctrine  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  being  largely  dwelt  upon  ;  and  the  result  was  very  impressive. 
There  was  at  that  time  no  larg-e  auditorium  in  which  the  various 
meetings  could  be  conducted,  so  a  large  tent  was  pitched  behind 
East  Hall,  and  there  the  exercises  were  held.  The  culmination  of 
the   conference   was  pentecostal    in    its  power,  and   the    spiritual 


THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE  219 

refreshing  which  came  at  that  time  to  many  behevers  is  still  mani- 
fest in  whatever  they  do. 

In  October,  1881,  the  second  convocation  began,  continuing 
through  the  month.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Andrew  Bonar,  of  Glasgow, 
Scotland,  was  the  principal  speaker,  and  among  the  others  who  par- 
ticipated were  Dr.  George  F.  Pentecost,  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon,  Dr. 
James  H.  Brooks,  Dr.  E.  P.  Goodwin,  Mr.  George  C.  Needham, 
and  Major  Whittle,  besides  many  others  whose  names  have  since 
come  to  be  especially  associated  with  Northfield  work.  There  was 
great  variety  in  the  services.  The  spirit  of  the  second  conference 
was  less  devotional  than  the  first,  but  was  given  more  to  doctrinal 
and  practical  study.  Most  of  the  meetings  were  held  in  East  Hall, 
but  in  the  afternoons  the  conference  met  in  the  Congregational 
Church  of  the  village,  and  occasionally  in  the  open  air.  The  inter- 
est deepened  throughout  the  month. 

How  They   Have   Grown 

Shortly  after  this  Mr.  Moody  went  to  England,  and  in  his 
absence  no  summer  conferences  were  held  at  Northfield  for  three 
years,  and  it  was  not  until  August,  1885,  that  the  third  convoca- 
tion was  held.  Mr.  J.  E.  K.  Studd  of  Cambridge  University, 
England,  gave  a  fine  impetus  to  the  meeting,  and  Mr.  John  B. 
Gough  delivered  during  this  month  one  of  his  last  addresses.  Dr. 
A.  T.  Pierson  and  Dr.  A.  J.  Gordon  also  helped  to  make  the  meet- 
ings signal  in  their  influence. 

And  so,  year  after  year,  the  Northfield  Conferences  have  grown 
in  interest  and  attendance.  The  new  buildings  which,  from  time  to 
time,  have  been  erected  for  the  educational  work  of  the  Seminary 
have  much  increased  the  facilities  of  entertainment  for  visitors,  and 
the  new  auditorium  makes  it  possible  to  assemble  a  great  thrcig 
under  cover.     Still  there  are  many  who  think  that  the  open-air 


220  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

services  have  been  more  stimulating  and  helpful  than  any  of  the 
others.  The  speakers  have  been  drawn,  as  formerly,  from  the  best, 
and  it  is  a  privilege  indeed  to  receive  through  association  with  such 
men  the  best  fruits  of  their  own  experiences.  It  has  always  seemed 
to  me  that  the  genius  of  Mr.  Moody  shone  more  in  his  manage- 
ment of  the  summer  conferences  than  in  any  other  detail  of  his 
work,  and  his  earnestness  and  his  devotion  were  ever  so  impressed 
on  all  the  services  that  no  one  could  go  away  from  a  meeting  with- 
out carrying  with  him  a  blessing.  Mr.  Moody's  educational  ideals, 
which  in  their  practical  forms  are  visible  to  the  visitor  to  the  con- 
ferences in  the  noble  buildings  which  crown  the  Northfield  hills, 
were  epitomized  in  the  work  of  the  summer  conferences. 

The  Student  Volunteers 

Some  time  in  the  spring  of  1886,  with  his  customary  foresight 
and  intuition  in  regard  to  what  might  advance  the  Kingdom  of 
Christ,  Mr.  Moody  called  to  his  side  Mr.  L.  D.  Wishard,  then 
college  secretary  of  the  International  Committee  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Associations  of  the  United  States  and  Canada. 
As  a  result  of  the  conference  between  these  two  men,  Mr.  Moody 
invited  each  of  the  College  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations  of 
the  country  to  send  a  delegate  to  spend  a  month  at  Mt.  Hermon  in 
July  of  the  same  year,  to  study  the  Bible  and  methods  of  Christian 
work  adapted  to  college  students.  This  invitation  was  accepted  by 
250  students,  from  about  ninety  different  college  associations. 
The  meetings  continued  from  July  7th  to  August  2d.  The  pro- 
gram of  each  day  was  as  follows :  From  eight  o'clock  in  the 
morning  the  men  considered  informally  for  an  hour  some  phase  of 
College  Association  work.  At  ten  o'clock  all  met  and  listened  to 
addresses  from  noted  speakers  from  abroad.  Some  time  was  also 
given   to  those  who  desired  to  ask  practical  questions,  and  these 


THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE  223 

were  answered  by  Mr.  Moody  in  liis  usual  clear,  direct  manner. 
In  these  meetings,  as  elsewhere,  Mr,  Moody  was  able  to  exercise  his 
wonderful  ability  to  associate  with  himself  a  corps  of  prominent 
Bible  scholars  and  teachers. 

A  large  number  of  Christian  students  were  present  who  had 
decided  to  devote  their  lives  to  the  work  in  foreign  missions. 
These  naturally  met  together  in  a  common  fellowship,  and  their 
earnestness  and  devotion  made  from  the  outset  a  deep  impression 
on  all.  Their  appeals  on  behalf  of  the  claims  of  missionary  work 
on  educated  Christian  young  men  also  made  a  profound  impression, 
and  many  students  were  then  and  there  led  to  express  a  willingness 
and  a  desire  to  enter  upon  work  in  the  foreign  field. 

Missionary  Interest  Awakened 

The  interest  awakened  was  fostered  by  two  young  men, 
Messrs.  Wilder  and  Foreman,  who  were  led  speedily  to  devote  a 
portion  of  their  time  as  students  to  deepening  and  widening  this 
work  among  the  students  of  the  colleges  not  represented  at  Mt. 
Hermon.  This  in  brief,  then,  is  how  the  Student  Volunteer  move- 
ment was  born ;  it  came  into  being  in  connection  with  the  first 
Christian  Student  Conference  ever  held  at  Mt.  Hermon,  where  Mr 
Moody's  school  for  boys  and  young  men  is  situated. 

Like  many  another  thing  for  which  Mr.  Moody  opened  the 
way,  if  he  did  not  actually  originate  it,  the  Student  Volunteer 
movement  has  grown  almost  beyond  comprehension.  It  assumed 
organization  in  1888,  and  has  become  a  recognized  factor  and  power 
in  the  missionary  life  of  the  Church  throughout  the  world,  as 
possibly  no  other  single  movement.  Briefly  stated,  the  four-fold 
purpose  of  the  organization  is  :  First,  to  awaken  and  foster  among 
all  the  Christian  students  of  the  United  States  and  Canada,  intelli- 
gent and  active  interest  in  foreign  missions.      Second,  to  enroll  a 


224  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

sufficient  number  of  properly  qualified  student  volunteers  to  meet 
the  successive  demands  of  the  various  missionary  Boards  of  North 
America.  Third,  to  help  all  such  as  pledge  themselves  to  foreign 
missionary  work  to  prepare  for  their  life  work,  and  to  increase  the 
co-operation  of  these  young  workers  in  developing  the  missionary 
life  of  home  churches.  Fourth,  to  lay  an  equal  burden  of  responsi- 
bility on  all  students  who  are  to  remain  as  ministers  and  lay  workers 
at  home,  that  they  may  actively  promote  missionary  enterprise  by 
intelligent  advocacy,  gifts  and  prayers. 

The  Volunteer  movement  is  not  a  missionary  board.  It 
never  has  sent  out  and  never  will  send  out  a  missionary,  for  it  is 
simply  a  recruiting  station.  As  in  so  many  other  ways,  the  wisdom 
of  Mr.  Moody  in  calling  to  his  side  such  men  as  L.  D.  Wishard, 
C.  K.  Ober  and  John  R.  Mott,  of  the  International  Committee  of 
the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  was  soon  manifest  in  the 
progress  of  the  movement,  and  these  men  have  had  much  to  do 
with  the  rapid  Increase  of  the  work  during  these  last  years. 

The  Growth  of  the  Work 

Some  conception  may  be  gained  of  the  prodigious  strides 
which  the  organization  has  made  when  it  is  known  that  it  already 
has  made  itself  felt  in  more  than  i,ooo  institutions  of  learning. 
Then  it  should  be  remembered  that  in  many  of  these,  perhaps 
more  notably  in  state,  professional  and  Independent  institutions, 
the  subject  of  foreign  missions  was  dealt  with  for  the  first  time 
when  the  representatives  of  the  student  volunteers  began  to 
extend  their  efforts.  It  is  safe  to  assert  that  where  one  student 
gave  this  subject  careful  consideration  before  the  movement  began, 
scores  and  scores  have  felt  and  thoughtfully  considered  the  claims 
of  the  world-wide  missions  since  and  through  the  ministry  of  this 
work.      It  is  said  that  the  student  attitude  of  many  colleges,  both 


THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE  225 

denominational  and  state,  has  completely  changed,  and  certain  it  is 
that  no  other  subject  has  ever  taken  such  a  deep  hold  on  the  con- 
victions of  college  men,  or  has  called  forth  from  them  such  unselfish 
devotion. 

There  are  on  the  roll  of  the  movement  at  this  time  about  4,000 
students.  Of  this  number  about  one-third  are  women  and  two- 
thirds  are  men.  Forty-eight  denominations  are  represented. 
Nearly  1,200  of  the  volunteers  have  already  gone  to  the  foreign 
field.  The  number  of  students  who  now  are  planning  to  become 
foreign  missionaries  is  five  times  as  great  in  the  colleges  of  the 
land,  and  twice  as  great  in  the  seminaries,  as  it  was  before  this 
movement  started.  The  Student  Volunteers  have  also  afforded 
substantial  aid  in  assisting  to  raise  money,  for  whereas  the  colleges 
formerly  gave  about  $5,000  a  year  to  foreign  missionary  work, 
they  now  give  more  than  $40,000, 

Some  Indirect  Effects 

It  must  be  plain  to  any  thoughtful  person  that  the  reflex  influ- 
ence of  this  movement  in  the  institutions  of  learning  themselves  is 
simply  incalculable.  For  every  student  who  has  offered  himself  to  go 
abroad,  certainly  one  or  more  have  been  influenced  to  take  up  a 
more  aggressive  Christian  life  at  home.  Development  in  Bible 
study  and  in  personal  work  for  the  salvation  of  their  fellows  on  the 
part  of  the  students,  as  a  secondary  influence  of  this  movement  is 
without  any  doubt  one  of  the  great  evangelistic  tendencies  of  the 
century.      At  least  indirectly,  it  may  be  traced  to  Mr.  Moody. 

One  of  the  most  wonderful  things  about  the  Student  Volun- 
teer influence  has  been  its  effect  upon  the  students  of  other  lands. 
Ten  years  ago  the  organization  for  the  United  States  and  Canada 
was  the  only  student  movement  in  the  world,  employing  the  volun- 
teer methods,  but  now  there  are  student  volunteers  in  Great  Britain, 


«26  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

Scandinavian  countries,  Germany,  France,  Australasia,  South 
Africa,  China,  India  and  Ceylon.  All  the  organizations  express 
their  indebtedness  to  the  American  branch  for  the  helpful  and 
practical  influence  it  exerted  in  the  formative  periods  of  the  work. 
It  is  exceedingly  significant  that  even  the  students  of  mission  lands 
have  joined  hands  with  the  Students  of  Christian  lands  in  a  deter- 
mined effort  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  all  mankind. 

In  August,  1895,  there  was  formed  in  the  historic  Vadstena 
Castle,  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Vettern,  in  Sweden,  a  World's  Student 
Christian  Federation.  There  were  present  official  representatives 
from  America,  Great  Britain,  Germany,  Scandinavia,  and  Mission 
lands.  Mr.  John  R.  Mott,  in  his  "Strategic  Points  in  the  World's 
Conquest,"  says,  "  Never  since  the  W^artburg  sheltered  the  great 
German  Reformer,  while  he  was  translating  the  Bible  for  the  com- 
mon people,  has  a  mediaeval  castle  served  a  purpose  fraught  with 
greater  blessing  to  all  mankind." 

A   Federation   for  the  W^orld 

Since  the  formation  of  this  federation  it  has  been  entered  by 
the  representatives  of  five  other  countries,  India,  Ceylon,  South 
Africa,  China  and  Japan,  so  that  practically  all  the  countries,  having 
anything  like  a  student  volunteer  movement,  are  now  banded 
togetiier. 

The  first  convention  of  the  World's  Student  Christian  Federa- 
tion was  held  in  the  United  States,  in  July,  1897,  in  conjunction 
with  the  annual  conference  of  the  American  and  Canadian  Intercol- 
legiate Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  at  Northfield.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  600  students  who  had  come  together  from  136  universi- 
ties and  colleges,  there  were  present  students  and  Christian  work- 
ers from  twenty-five  other  nations  or  races.  Special  meetings  were 
held  on  Round  Top,  the  spot  which   is   now  especially  consecrated 


THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFFRENCE  227 

to  Mr.  Moody's  memory.  Round  Top  is  not  less  sacred  because  it 
is  the  place  where  more  students  have  dedicated  their  lives  to  the 
extension  of  Christ's  religion  than  any  other  place  In  the  world. 
Says  Mr.  Mott,  "  Day  after  day  at  sunset,  the  hundreds  of  delegates 
from  the  ends  of  the  earth  met  on  this  sacred  mountain  to  lift  their 
eyes  and  look  far  beyond  the  beautiful  Connecticut  valley  and  the 
distant  green  mountains  upon  the  great  harvest  fields  of  the  world, 
and  linger  and  listen  to  burning  messages  from  their  fellow  students, 
telling  of  the  triumphs  of  Christ  among  their  own  people,  and  the 
need  of  more  men  in  the  regions  beyond." 

Prayer  in  Twenty-one   Languages 

The  Federation  delegates  attended  not  only  the  large  special 
meetings  over  which  Mr.  Moody  presided,  but  also  the  conferences 
for  the  discussion  of  methods.  One  afternoon  a  pilgrimage  was 
made  to  Mt.  Hermon,  which,  as  the  reader  will  remember,  Is  several 
miles  from   Northfield  on  the  other  side  of  the  river       The  orroves 

o 

and  hills  and  river  banks  about  Mt.  Hermon  are  sacred,  for  it  was 
here  that  the  Student  Volunteer  movement  came  into  existence  in 
1886.  Some  who  had  attended  that  first  wonderful  meeting  were 
present  to  recount  the  experiences  of  those  first  days  of  blessed 
surrender.  Before  the  delegates  left  Mt.  Hermon,  Mr.  Moody 
called  them  together  for  the  consecrating  of  the  ground  that  had 
been  set  apart  as  a  site  for  a  chapel.  In  a  representative  meeting 
this  plot  was  dedicated  to  God's  service.  Then  the  delegates  offered 
prayer  in  twenty-one  different  languages,  and  yet  there  was  no  con- 
fusion of  tono-ues,  for  all  were  broug"ht  tog-ether  In  their  common 
love  of  the  Master. 

What  will  be  the  result  of  this  movement  we  can  only  con- 
jecture, for  It  Is  yet  in  its  Infancy,  but  it  is  significant  to  note  that 
already  it  has  brought  together  Christian  students  In  all  the  world 

13 


228  THE  NORTHFIELD  CONFERENCE 

as  never  before.  It  has  made  the  various  student  movements 
acquainted  with  one  another.  It  has  organized  si::  great  national 
student  movements,  and  has  facihtated  the  organization  of  two 
others.  The  last  conference  of  the  Federation  was  held  in  Eisenach, 
at  the  foot  of  the  famous  Wartburg,  in  Germany,  and  was  attended 
by  students  from  twenty-four  countries.  Nearly  400  years  ago,  in 
the  castle  which  still  crowns  that  storied  mountain,  a  monk  made  a 
consecration  of  his  talents  which  blessed  the  world  as  it  had  not 
been  blessed  before  for  many  centuries.  When  Martin  Luther 
came  down  from  that  sacred  hill  he  brought  with  him  a  Bible  for 
the  people.  The  perverseness  of  the  generation  did  not  lead  him 
to  dash  his  tablets  to  the  ground  as  he  descended,  but  instead  they 
went  out  through  the  land  and  gave  men  almost  for  the  first  time 
an  insight  into  the  true  teachings  of  our  Lord.  How  fitting  it  is 
that  on  this  spot,  hallowed  by  the  memory  of  the  great  reformer, 
the  flower  of  the  young  men  of  to-day  should  pledge  themselves  to 
devote  their  lives  to  carrying  to  all  the  quarters  of  the  globe  the 
blessed  Gospel  ! 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

The  Chicago  Bible  Institute 

THE  Chicago  Bible  Institute  is  one  of  the  great  monument?, 
which  Mr.  Moody  has  left  for  himself.  That  it  was  born  in 
prayer  is  proved  from  the  words  of  an  address  which  Mr. 
Moody  made  at  one  of  the  last  meetings  of  the  World's  Fair  cam- 
paign :  "  Little  we  thought,  when  we  prayed  some  three  or  four 
years  ago  for  a  Bible  Institute  near  the  church,  that  we  should  have 
any  such  opportunity  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  world  as  we  have 
had  these  last  six  months.  We  should  not  have  been  able  to  do 
the  work  we  have  done  during  these  past  months  but  for  the  Insti- 
tute and  the  three  hundred  workers  who  had  gathered  there  from 
every  part  of  the  country.  No  matter  at  what  point  the  work  has 
been  started,  we  have  had  force  enough  to  carry  it  on.  I  believe  that 
it  would  have  been  utterly  impossible  to  have  carried  on  this  work 
without  the  help  of  the  Bible  Institute.  It  may  oe  that  God  raised 
it  up  for  such  a  time,  even  as  Esther  was  raised  up  for  the  time  of 
her  country's  peril  and  need." 

The   Need  of  the   Institution 

The  need  of  an  institution  of  this  kind  became  evident  to  Mr. 

Moody  as   he  went  about,  holding  evangelistic  services   in  various 

places.      There  was  constant  difficulty  in  getting  persons  who  were 

able  to  deal  directly  with  inquirers  or  who  were  trained   sufficiently 

in  the  knowledge  of  the  Word  of  God  to  point  the  soul  to  Christ. 

In  every  meeting  there  would  be  great  numbers  of  the   poor   and 

of  the  outcast   whose  hearts  would  be  reached  by  the  message,  and 

229 


230  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE 

when  there  was  any  great  number  of  such  inquirers  it  was  quite  impos- 
sible for  him  to  deal  personally  with  them  all.  On  one  occasion,  Mr. 
Moody  said,  "  One  of  the  great  purposes  we  have  in  view  in  the 
Bible  Institute  is  to  raise  up  men  and  women  who  will  put  their  lives 
alongside  the  life  of  the  poor  and  the  laboring  classes,  and  bring 
the  influence  of  the  Gospel  to  bear  upon  them."  Out  of  a  little 
Mission  Sunday  School,  which  had  been  organized  by  Mr.  Moody, 
trrew  the  Chicasfo  Avenue  Church,  and  it  was  in  this  church  that 
the  first  steps  were  taken  toward  the  founding  of  such  an  institute 
as  Mr.  Moody  had  in  mind.  In  the  spring  of  1889,  the  Chicago 
Evangelization  Society  came  into  existence,  and  Mr.  Moody  was 
its  president.  From  the  experiment  made  at  the  church  it  was 
clearly  demonstrated  that  it  would  be  possible  to  have  a  Bible  In- 
stitute conducted  on  practical  lines  in  the  City  of  Chicago. 
Ground  and  buildings  near  the  church  were  purchased,  and  the 
organization  was  effected  in  October,  1889,  when  the  Institute 
opened  for  regular  work. 

The  Beginning 

At  the  beginning  something  like  eighty  students  were  enrolled, 
fifty  of  them  being  men  and  thirty  women.  Three  houses  had 
been  already  purchased  by  the  Institution,  and  another  brick  struc- 
ture was  at  once  begun,  which  was  finished  the  following  year.  The 
attendance  during  this  year  was  three  times  as  great  as  the  first 
year.  The  students  came  from  all  parts  of  the  world.  They  held 
religious  opinions  of  every  type,  and  they  came  to  the  Institute  with 
different  objects.  Some  of  them  intended  to  continue  their  studies 
after  leaving  the  Institute  ;  others  expected  to  enter  immediately 
upon  active  work  when  they  left.  Indeed,  there  were  many  pastors 
of  churches,  who  came  there  in  order  that  they  might  increase  their 
knowledge    of    practical   ways   of  working  In    their  own   churches. 


,'  .  •>**  w 


*>^^ 


■^^ 


'V  •*  T*    ''  ^ 


■•12! 


.  .t»-' 


rl::t. 


THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  233 

Perhaps  in  no  institution  of  the  country  would  there  be  manifest  a 
more  intense  zeal  for  work  than  would  be  found  there.  The  main 
object  of  the  institution  was  both  practical  and  simple  ;  it  was  to 
give  all  the  students  a  thorough  working  knowledge  of  the  Scrip- 
tures, in  order  that  they  might  be  equipped  for  personal  Christian 
work,  and  at  the  same  time  have  their  own  spiritual  lives  stimulated. 
There  are,  in  all,  accommodations  for  about  three  hundred 
students.  The  two  departments  are  kept  separate  except  at  the 
time  of  lectures,  when   all  come  together  in   the   lecture   hall   of 

the  main  building. 

The  Object  in  View 

One  is  not  a  guest  at  the  Institute  for  any  great  length  of 
time  without  discovering  the  object  which  the  Institute  has  in  view. 
He  will  see  here  200  or  300  bright  and  earnest  Christian  young 
men  and  women  from  all  parts  of  the  world.  As  a  rule,  they  come 
from  that  class  of  people  which  the  Institute  is  training  them  to 
help. 

They  have  no  fortune  back  of  them,  few  of  them  have  had  the 

advantages  of  an  education  beyond  that  afforded  by  the  common 

schools.     They  come  there  with  strong  convictions  that  God  has 

called  them  to  some  special   service  which  needs  special  training 

such  as  the  Institute  can  sfive  them.     One  feels  the  influence  of  the 

spiritual  atmosphere  which  pervades  the  Institute  as  soon  as  the 

door  is  opened  to  receive  him,  and,  if  he  were  spending  some  little 

time    among  these  young    people  so  consecrated    to    their    work, 

he  could  not  come  away  without  having  received  great  personal 

blessing. 

The  Ordinary  Routine 

The  ordinary  routine  of  the  Institute  is  systematic  and  orderly 
to  a  high  degree.  The  hour  for  breakfast  is  seven  o'clock.  All 
take  part   in   asking  God's   blessing  upon   the  food,   for  grace   is 


234  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE 

"sung"  and  not  "said".  When  the  breakfast  is  finished  the  chairs 
are  pushed  baclc  from  the  tables  and  a  short  exposition  is  made  of 
the  Scripture  chosen  for  the  morning  devotions.  As  a  rule  this 
Scripture  is  read  by  Mr.  John  H.  Hunter,  who  has  a  general  over- 
sight of  the  men's  department  ;  if  not  by  him,  then  by  some  one  of 
the  visiting  lecturers  who  is  living  temporarily  at  the  Institute.  At 
eight  o'clock  they  assemble  for  prayer,  and  at  nine  o'clock  the 
young  men  and  young  women  assemble  together  for  the  first 
lecture  of  the  day.  From  ten  to  eleven  o'clock  the  time  is  given 
to  thorough  instruction,  under  competent  teachers,  in  vocal  and 
instrumental  music.  The  second  lecture  hour  is  at  eleven  o'clock, 
and  dinner  at  12.30.  At  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  comes  the 
fourth  lecture,  and  the  evenings  are  invariably  taken  up  by  the 
students  who  are  assigned  to  various  places  for  practical  work.  It 
would  seem  to  be  one  object  of  these  students  to  bring  theory  and 
practice  close  together,  for  as  in  the  morning  they  are  shown  where  to 
find  the  Scriptures  which  would  point  the  way  to  Christ,  they  are 
in  the  evening  sent  out  with  those  same  Scriptures  to  make  a  prac- 
tical application  of  them  upon  the  unsaved. 

The  Practical  Nature  of  the  Work 

The  practical  part  of  the  education  which  is  given  to  those 
who  study  here  is  of  the  most  important  character.  Every  student 
is  required  to  do  a  certain  proportion  of  practical  work  each  week 
that  he  is  in  the  Institute.  Sometimes  he  will  be  obliged  to  visit 
the  homes  in  some  section  of  the  city  designated  to  him.  At 
other  times  he  will  be  obliged  to  organize  and  carry  on  cottage 
prayer  meetings.  Then,  nearly  all  the  missions  of  Chicago  are 
supplied  more  or  less  by  students  from  the  Institute.  Children's 
meetings  are  held,  industrial  schools  are  also  carried  on,  and  in 
almost   every  case  where  students  are   sent   to   conduct   meetings 


THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  235 

they  are  obliged  also  to  hold  inquiry  meetings,  so  that  they  get 
hold  not  only  of  theories,  but  also  are  shown  how  to  put  these 
theories  into  operation. 

The  course  of  study  is  most  varied,  though  the  main  object 
constantly  adhered  to  is  that  all  the  students  may  get  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  Word  of  God  and  be  taught  how  they  may  skill- 
fully apply  it.  The  doctrines  of  the  Scriptures  are  studied  in  a 
thorough  and  careful  manner.  Several  books  are  taken  up  and  an 
analytic  study  made  of  these.  Each  year  some  of  the  best  known 
Bible  students  of  the  country  are  brought  in  to  reinforce  the  regular 
staff,  and  these  give  daily  lectures  on  some  biblical  theme.  As  I 
have  before  stated,  one  of  the  most  impressive  features  of  the 
Institute  life  is  the  spiritual  atmosphere  which  pervades  it. 

Touching   Requests  for  Prayer 

After  the  supper  hour,  and  just  before  the  students  scatter  in 
all  directions  to  visit  the  homes  and  missions  and  other  places  of 
assignment,  they  meet  together  for  prayer,  and  those  who  have 
some  special  burden  upon  their  hearts  send  up  a  written  request  to 
the  leader.  It  is  most  touching  sometimes  to  hear  the  words  of 
these  requests  for  prayer.  Sometimes  they  are  like  this,  "  Please 
pray  for  that  unsaved  man  with  whom  I  am  to  speak  to-night ;  " 
or  '*  Pray  for  me  that  I  may  conduct  the  services  in  my  mission  to- 
night in  all  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit  ;  "  or  "  Pray  for  me  that 
I  may  be  led  to  do  the  right  thing  in  striving  to  arrange  for  that  series 
of  cottage  meetings."  One  by  one  these  requests  are  read  by  the 
leader,  and  then  the  most  fervent  prayers  are  offered  up  that 
these  desires  may  be  heard  and  granted.  The  students  insist  upon 
it,  that  they  have  the  most  remarkable  answers  to  prayer,  and  no 
one  could  be  present  at  one  of  these  meetings  and  notice  the 
nature  of    the   requests,   and  the  fervent   spirit  in  which  they  are 


236  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE 

presented   to  God,  without  believing  that  these  prayers  would  be 
answered. 

The  teacher  from  the  outside  has,  as  a  rule,  rare  opportunities 
to  get  into  close  and  intimate  relationship  with  the  young  men  of 
the  Institute.  If  he  can  succeed  in  interesting-  these  men  with  his 
Bible  theme,  he  will  be  sure  to  be  visited  by  large  numbers,  some- 
times as  many  as  twenty,  who  come  to  him  for  some  further  light 
upon  questions  which  are  troubling  them.  The  students  are 
frank  and  open-hearted,  and  are  earnestly  seeking  whatever  light 
God  will  give  them.  They  seem  to  have  a  burning  desire  to  be 
fitted  properly  for  any  work  to  which  God  may  call  them. 

The  Rev.  R.  A.  Torrey,  who  is  the  superintendent  of  the 
Institute,  is  without  question  the  most  capable  man  that  Mr.  Moody 
could  have  found  for  this  very  important  position.  He  has  pre- 
eminent endowments  which  qualify  him  in  a  very  special  manner  to 
conduct  this  work  which  has  been  in  his  charge  from  its  inception. 
He  is  a  man  of  most  delightful  spirit,  and  has  a  profound  knowl- 
edge of  the  Word  of  God,  which  he  has  wrought  up  in  a  most 
thorough  form,  and  which  is  with  intense  earnestness  taught  the 
students,  who  are  subjected  to  a  very  thorough  examination  at  the 
end  of  their  course. 

Mr.  Torrey's  Influence  Upon  the  Institute 

Mr.  Torrey  is  not  only  the  superintendent  of  the  Institute, 
but  also  the  pastor  of  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church.  He  is  loved 
by  all  the  students,  who  accept  as  absolute  his  v/ord,  from  which  it 
is  dangerous  for  any  strange  teacher  to  digress. 

He  has  had  from  the  beginning  a  most  profound  influence 
upon  the  character  of  the  Institute,  as  well  as  of  the  students  who 
have  gone  from  it.  These  students  are  trained  for  special  spheres 
of  work,  spheres  which  would  never  be  filled,  if  it  were  necessary  to 


THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  237 

depend  upon  the  ordinary  theological  seminaries.  The  theological 
student  prepares  himself  for  the  ordinary  ministry ;  those  who 
come  to  the  Moody  Institute  are  seeking  to  become  pastors'  assist- 
ants, mission  workers  in  the  slums,  secretaries  to  Young  Peoples' 
Societies  or  Young  Men's  Christian  Associations,  Sunday  school 
workers,  and  evangelists.  That  there  is  need  of  such  workers  is 
clearly  evident  from  the  large  number  of  requests  which  are  con- 
stantly coming  in  to  the  superintendent  for  men  to  supply  vacancies. 
It  has  been  impossible  hitherto  to  meet  the  demand,  but  neverthe- 
less, year  after  year,  there  has  been  put  into  the  world  by  this  Insti- 
tute a  laro-e  number  of  consecrated  Christian  workers  for  fields 
which  are  considered  by  no  means  easy. 

A  Steady    Increase 

The  Institute  is  accomplishing  the  very  object  which  Mr. 
Moody  had  in  mind  at  the  time  of  its  organization,  This  object 
has  been  held  to  unswervingly  from  the  beginning,  and  in  the  ten 
years'  history  of  the  Institute  it  would  be  impossible  to  overesti- 
mate the  value  of  the  work  which  has  been  accomplished  by  it. 
Steadily  from  the  beginning,  the  number  of  students  in  attendance 
has  increased,  and  this  increase  is  noticeable  not  only  in  the  men's 
department,  but  also  in  the  women's  department. 

During  these  first  ten  years  of  its  organization  nearly  three 
thousand  students  have  studied  at  the  Institute,  and  at  least  a 
third  of  these  are  now  engaged  in  active  Christian  work  throughout 
the  country.  The  Institute  has  not  only  provided  home  workers, 
but  is  represented  also  by  a  large  number  in  the  field  of  foreign 
missions,  and  some  of  those  who  have  come  from  foreign  lands  to 
be  educated  here  have  returned  to  their  own  homes  and  are  loyally 
serving  Christ  there. 


238  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE 

Since  the  organization  three  other  buildings  have  been  pur- 
chased for  the  work  of  the  Institute,  and  in  connection  with  the 
Institute  a  Colportage  Association  has  been  established,  which 
has  published  millions  of  books,  and  distributed  them  widely  in  all 
parts  of  the  world.  The  purpose  of  this  Association  is  to  send  out 
sound  Christian  literature  at  low  prices.  The  work  has  no  denomi- 
national connection,  and  all  Christians  are  expected  to  give  their 
sympathy  and  co-operation  to  the  work  in  order  that  the  vast  influ- 
ence of  vicious  literature,  which  is  now  so  widely  circulated,  may  be 
counteracted.  Thousands  of  these  books  are  distributed  free,  and 
it  has  been  the  special  desire  of  Mr.  Moody  to  put  these  books 
within  the  reach  of  the  prisoners  in  the  penal  institutions   of  the 

country. 

Let  us  Multiply  Such   Institutes 

So  long  as  the  Institute  endures,  it  cannot  be  said  of  Chicago, 
at  least,  that  there  is  not  a  large  number  of  intelligent,  consecrated, 
Christians  who  are  both  willing  and  eager  to  go  down  in  the  slums 
and  dark  places  and  put  their  lives  alongside  the  lives  of  the  outcast 
and  fallen.  So  deeply  impressed  was  Mr.  Moody  with  the  impor- 
tance of  this  work  that  he  thousfht  it  desirable  that  such  institutes 
should  be  started  in  other  sections  of  the  country,  and  I  believe  that 
he  cherished  the  hope  that,  at  no  distant  day,  there  might  be  insti- 
tutes of  this  character  in  all  of  our  great  centres  of  population.  It 
is  the  unique  and  splendid  work  which  is  being  accomplished  by 
the  Institute  that  kept  It  close  to  Mr.  Moody's  heart,  and  just  so 
far  as  our  sympathies  go  out  toward  the  poor  and  the  unsaved 
masses,  we  will  seek  by  all  the  influence  we  possess  to  perpetuate 
this,  and  to  multiply  in  our  land  institutes  of  a  similar  character. 

It  is  most  interesting  to  notice  the  peculiar  and  deep  influence 
which  Mr.  Moody  had,  not  only  upon  the  students  in  the  Institute, 
but  also  upon  those  who  gathered  together  at  Northfield  and  Mt. 


THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  239 

Hermon.  Not  always  at  once  were  students  drawn  to  him,  but  it 
would  not  be  lono-  before  his  tremendous  mag-netism  would  be  felt 
in  their  lives.  He  held  a  unique  position  in  all  the  schools  that 
were  under  his  direction  ;  both  at  Northfield  and  Chicago  he  came 
to  be  regarded  as  a  father,  and  no  one  would  be  able  to  estimate 
the  influence  exerted  upon  the  character  of  the  students  by  Mr. 
Moody's    broad   sympathy. 

The  Institution  Was  Born  of  Necessity 

While  the  Northfield  schools  were  ever  near  to  his  heart,  there 
was  a  special  sense  in  which  the  work  that  was  being  carried  on  at 
the  Institute  appealed  to  him.  Possibly  too,  his  heart  was  drawn  out 
more  toward  the  Chicago  work,  because  this  more  than  the  other  de- 
pended upon  the  personal  interest  of  Mr.  Moody  for  its  maintenance. 
It  is  in  no  sense  a  theological  seminary  ;  it  was  never  designed  to  be  ; 
it  was  not  even  designed  to  supplement  the  education  that  might  be 
obtained  at  a  theological  seminary.  The  institution  was  born  of  the 
necessity  of  bringing  into  the  field  workers  who  would  be  skilled  to 
meet  the  needs  and  difficulties  of  those  who  never  would  come  with- 
in the  reach  of  the  gfraduate  of  the  theologfical  school. 

If,  however,  the  Institute  does  not  cover  the  ground  of  theoret- 
ical study,  which  is  ordinarily  taken  up  by  the  technical  school,  it  is 
nevertheless  in  its  own  way  giving  a  thorough  training  for  those  who 
are  to  do  a  special  work  in  the  world.  The  Bible  itself  is  the  book 
upon  which  the  attention  of  the  student  is  constantly  centred.  The 
book  is  approached  from  various  standpoints.  All  the  great  doctrines 
are  most  carefully  and  systematically  taught  the  students.  It  would 
be  a  strange  thing  for  any  young  man  or  woman  to  pass  through 
the  course  of  studies  without  having  at  the  end  a  very  clear  concep- 
tion of  the  great  truth  of  salvation  ;  and  also  a  clear  idea  as  to  how 
salvation  might  be  presented  to  other  men.     Whoever  has  had  the 


240  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE   ■ 

privilege  of  working  in  the  Institute  of  Chicago,  or  in  any  other 
place  where  graduates  of  this  institution  have  assisted  in  the  work, 
would  see  as  no  other  how  much  real  value  lies  in  an  institution  of 
this  kind.  It  would  not  be  too  much  to  say  that  the  effectiveness 
of  any  evangelistic  campaign  would  be  quadrupled  if  there  could  be 
distributed  through  the  audience  a  number  of  trained  workers  such 
as  are  to  be  found  in  the  Chicago  Bible  Institute. 

The  Women's  Department 

The  splendid  services  of  Mrs.  S.  B.  Capron,  for  so  long  the 
superintendent  of  the  womens'  department,  ought  not  to  be  passed 
by  without  notice.  Coming  as  she  did,  enriched  in  experience,  she 
brought  a  peculiar  ability  and  a  devotion  of  spirit  to  the  work  of 
the  Institute.  The  same  delightful  spiritual  atmosphere  which 
pervades  the  men's  department,  is  noticeable  in  the  buildings  of 
the  women's  department.  These  consecrated  young  women  are, 
by  no  means,  behind  the  young  men  in  their  zeal  for  the  work 
which  is  laid  out  for  them.  They,  too,  are  sent  out  upon  the  streets 
to  work.  They  go  to  the  police  stations  ;  they  are  to  be  found  in 
the  halls  and  tents  ;  they  go  from  house  to  house  in  visitation  of 
the  poor  and  the  sick,  and  are  especially  equipped  with  the  right 
answer  for  those  who  may  be  inquiring  the  way  of  salvation. 

As  a  rule  the  students  are  assigned  to  their  different  sections 
in  pairs.  They  hold  a  mothers'  meeting  on  Wednesday  at  the 
Institute  and,  in  their  house  to  house  visitation,  invite  the  mothers 
to  this  meeting,  telling  them  to  bring  their  children  too,  and 
these  little  ones  are  entertained  and  taught  by  kindergarten 
methods,  while  the  poor  mothers  have  their  bodies  refreshed  and 
their  souls  brought  into  contact  with  a  higher  spiritual  plane. 
Then  they  are  invited  also  to  the  great  Sunday  afternoon  Bible 
class,  to  which  they  come,  and  again  the   children  are  taken  care  of 


REV.  R.  A.  TORREY,  Superintendent  of  the  Moody  Bible  Institute. 


THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE  243 

in  the  primary  departments.  Often  they  can  be  induced  also  to 
attend  the  evening  service,  and  all  these  tremendous  results  are 
being  achieved,  home  and  character  being  transformed  by  this 
noble  band  of  young  women  who  have  given  up  their  whole  lives 
to  consecrated  service  of  this  kind. 

Development  of  the  Student's  Character 

The  object  of  the  Institute  is  not  altogether  defined  by,  or 
limited  to,  the  study  of  the  Bible  or  practical  Christian  work. 
There  is  another  design,  namely,  that  the  character  of  the  students 
themselves  may  be  developed  on  spiritual  and  symmetrical  lines. 
Many  a  one  has  come  to  the  Institute  with  little  conception  of 
the  possibilities  lying  within  himself,  or  of  the  possibilites  of  service 
lying  without  him,  who  here,  under  the  spiritual  influence  of  the 
home,  has  had  these  things  dawn  upon  him  and  has  gone  forth  with 
some  wide  and  noble  plan  of  action. 

No  wonder  that  this  Institution,  with  its  noble  aim  and  its 
already  accomplished  good,  was  the  joy  and  delight  of  Mr.  Moody's 
heart.  It  means  the  perpetuation  of  that  work  to  which  he  had 
consecrated  his  own  life  ;  it  means  that  after  him  will  be  raised  up 
generations  of  men  and  women  who  will,  so  far  as  God  will  give 
them  strength,  do  what  he  has  done,  by  putting  their  lives  along- 
side the  lives  of  the  poor  and  wretched  and  miserable  and  outcast. 
No  man  in  all  the  world  has  so  closely  touched  the  lowly  classes  as 
did  Mr.  Moody.  It  might  almost  be  said  of  him  as  it  was  said  of  his 
Master,  "The  common  people  heard  him  gladly,"  and  his  great 
design  in  the  establishing  of  the  Bible  Institute  was  that  it  might 
ever  be  in  the  interests  of  the  common  people.  In  the  interests  of 
the  common  people  it  has  been  and  doubtless  will  continue  to  be, 
for  whatever  of  training  may  be  gained  by  the  students  is  immedi- 
ately utilized,  not  in  the  behalf  of  the   rich,  but  in  behalf  of  those 


244  THE  CHICAGO  BIBLE  INSTITUTE 

whom  sin  has  marred,  and  who  are  in  special  need  of  personal 
sympathy  such  as  they  can  give.  Nowhere  in  all  the  world  will 
there  stand  a  whiter  monument  to  the  memory  of  Mr.  Moody  than 
this  great  training  school  of  Christian  workers.  This  is  no  finished 
work,  but  one  that  will  live  on,  and  one  which,  by  reason  of  Its 
peculiar  need,  will  have  a  peculiar  claim  upon  the  sympathy  and 
prayer  of  those  who  are  interested  in  it. 

It  was  one  of  the  cherished  desires  of  Mr.  Moody's  heart  that 
this  Institution  might  be  put  upon  a  basis  that  would  make  It  pos- 
sible for  the  work  to  continue  without  a  constant  appeal  to  its 
devoted  friends  for  an  annual  deficit.  No  more  fitting  tribute  can 
be  paid  to  the  founder  of  the  Institution  than  to  fulfill  this  desire 
of  his  heart,  and  raise  a  sufficient  endowment  to  perpetuate  this, 
one  of  his  grreatest  works. 

At  Mr.  Moody's  special  request,  I,  a  few  years  ago,  became 
Vice-President  of  the  Bible  Institute.  He  was  desirous  at  that 
time  that  I  should  give  much  of  my  life  to  it,  and  I  was  very 
strongly  tempted  to  do  so.  But  the  call  of  duty  was  clearer  in 
another  direction,  and  so  I  was  obliged  to  turn  aside,  although 
nothing  would  have  given  me  greater  pleasure  than  to  have  been 
associated  with  him  in  this  ereat  work.  I  desire  to  commend  it  to 
my  readers  everywhere,  and  I  believe  the  blessing  of  God  will  be 
especially  upon  them,  if  they  should  help,  not  only  with  their 
prayers,  but  by  the  contribution  of  their  money,  to  the  firmer 
establishment  of  this  important  work.  Young  men  and  women 
who  could  not  possibly  secure  training  for  Christian  work  else- 
where, have  been  given  opportunities  for  study  here,  and  to  my 
personal  knowledge  hundreds  of  them  have  been  helped  by  Mr. 
Moody  when  there  was  no  one  else  to  help.  I  pray  God,  that  in 
Chicago  the  Bible  Institute  may  ever  stand  as  a  memorial  of  the 
work  of  this  consecrated  man  of  God. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

The  World's  Fair  Campaign 

WHEN  the  World's  Columbian  Exposition  became  an 
assured  fact,  and  Chicago  was  finally  selected  as  the 
place  of  the  celebration,  Mr.  Moody  was  quick  to  notice 
the  possibility  which  would  arise  to  carry  the  Gospel  to  the  multi- 
tudes likely  to  be  attracted  there.  Other  men  might  have  been 
blind  to  this,  but  not  this  mighty  man  of  God.  When  he  came  to 
Chicago  his  mind  was  clear  as  to  the  necessity  of  a  wide  oppor- 
tunity for  evangelistic  movement,  and  he  was  in  a  position  to  com- 
mand the  services  of  those  men  upon  whom  God  had  set  the 
special  seal  of  His  approval.  His  heart  had  for  some  time  been 
fixed  upon  this  work,  as  is  evident  from  the  address  he  made  after 
his  memorable  experience  on  the  steamship  Spree,  in  which  he  says : 

A  Vow  TO  God 

"  As  I  was  preparing  to  leave  London  after  my  last  visit  there, 
I  called  upon  a  famous  physician.  He  told  me  that  my  heart  was 
weakening  and  that  I  would  have  to  ease  up  on  my  work,  that  I 
would  have  to  be  more  careful  of  myself ;  and  I  was  going  home 
with  an  idea  that  I  would  ease  up  a  little.  During  the  voyage,  the 
announcement  came  that  our  vessel,  the  Spree,  was  sinking,  and  we 
rolled  there  for  two  days  helplessly.  No  one  on  earth  knows  what 
I  passed  through  at  the  thought  that  probably  my  work  was 
finished,  and  that  I  would  never  again  have  the  privilege  of  preach- 
ing the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ ;  and  on  that  first  dark  night  after 

245 


246  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 

the  accident,  I  made  a  vow  that  if  God  would  let  me  live  and  bring 
me  back  to  America,  I  would  go  back  to  Chicago,  and  at  this 
World's  Fair,  preach  the  Gospel  with  all  the  power  He  would  give 
me.  And  God  has  made  it  possible  for  me  to  keep  that  vow  during 
the  past  five  months.  It  seems  as  if  I  went  to  the  very  gates  of 
Heaven  during  that  two  days  on  the  sinking  ship,  and  God  per- 
mitted me  to  come  back  and  preach  His  Son  a  little  longer,"  After 
landing  on  these  shores  he  went  to  his  Northfield  home,  and  having 
brought  the  students  of  Mt.  Hermon  and  Northfield  together  at 
six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  he  said  to  them,  "  If  you  have  any 
regard  for  me,  if  you  love  me,  pray  for  me  that  God  may  anoint 
me  for  the  work  in  Chicago  ;  I  want  to  be  filled  with  the  Spirit 
that  I  may  preach  the  Gospel  as  I  never  preached  it  before  ;  we 
want  to  see  the  salvation  of  God  as  we  have  never  seen  it  before." 
Not  only  to  the  students  of  Northfield  and  Mt.  Hermon  did 
he  emphasize  the  importance  and  value  of  prayer,  but  he  insisted 
upon  it  in  other  directions  so  that  in  all  regions  there  was  rising 
continuous  prayer  that  the  blessing  of  God  might  be  poured  out 
upon  the  unsaved  masses  which  would  throng  the  streets  of 
Chicago. 

The  First  Meeting  of  the  Campaign. 

It  was  a  most  fittino-  thine  that  the  first  meeting  of  this  cam- 
paign  should  be  held  in  the  Chicago  Avenue  Church,  known  as 
Moody's  church.  On  the  first  Sunday  of  May,  which  was  bright 
and  beautiful,  a  great  congregation  came  together  in  the  church 
and  waited  patiently  for  the  appearance  of  the  evangelist.  He 
came  in,  followed  by  Mr.  Sankey  and  other  distinguished  leaders. 
When  the  time  arrived  for  Mr.  Moody  to  speak,  he  took  for  his 
theme  the  elder  brother  in  the  story  of  the  prodigal  son.  If,  in  his 
description,  he  pictured  the  elder  brother  as  the  meanest  man  on 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN  247 

earth,  and  unworthy  of  a  father's  love,  on  the  other  hand  he 
showed  how  graciously  God  received  those  who,  through  repenting 
of  their  sins,  turned  back  to  Him.  The  yearning  of  his  own  heart 
that  the  lost  sinner  might  be  found,  was  a  key  note,  and  gave  the 
characteristics  of  all  the  sermons  that  were  subsequently  preached 
by  Mr.  Moody  and  his  co-workers  in  this  campaign.  All  were 
animated  with  the  one  spirit,  that  Christ  might  be  presented 
lovingly,  earnestly,  and  persistently  as  the  friend  of  sinners.  The 
vast  number  of  those  who  accepted  the  invitation  invariably  offered, 
shows  how  God  set   His  seal  to  simple  testimony  of  this  character. 

A  Marked  Characteristic  of   His  Faith. 

Afternoon  services  were  held  in  this  same  church,  and  again 
there  was  another  crowd  to  hear  Mr.  Moody,  who  spoke  on  the 
subject  of  Praise.  He  had  such  a  full  assurance  that  God  would 
send  a  wave  of  blessing  over  the  city  that  his  heart  was  filled  with 
praise  in  anticipation  of  it.  The  invariable  desire  on  the  part  of 
Mr.  Moody  to  praise  God  with  his  whole  heart  for  anticipated 
blessings  was  one  of  the  marked  characteristics  of  his  faith.  This 
is  as  rare  as  it  is  beautiful,  and  it  was  the  theme  of  that  afternoon 
meeting.  At  night  the  church  was  thronged  again,  while  services 
were  also  held  in  other  places.  Special  meetings  in  different  parts 
of  the  city  were  also  conducted  by  the  students  of  the  Institute. 
So  passed  the  first  day  of  the  great  campaign  in  Chicago.  The 
sins  and  sorrows  of  the  city  lay  like  a  heavy  burden  on  Mr. 
Moody's  heart,  and  it  became  evident,  as  his  plans  matured,  that 
his  design  was  not  merely  to  reach  the  multitude  of  strangers  who 
were  pouring  into  the  city,  but  that  he  might  also  influence  the 
citizens  themselves.  The  moral  condition  of  the  city  was  beyond 
description.  Sunday  was  the  great  holiday  of  the  week  ;  all  the 
places  of  amusement  were   open  ;  the  worst   features   of  a  Sunday 

14 


248  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 

on  the  Continent  were  observed,  and  nothing  but  the  outpouring  of 

the  Holy  Spirit  could  check  the  tide. 

It    is    no    easy  matter   to  plan  and   carry  into    execution    the 

details  of  a  great  campaign  like  this,  but  Mr.  Moody  was  in  per- 

,     feet  command  of  the  situation.      He  spent  hour  after  hour  waiting 

(     upon  God,  and  God  in  response  opened  door  after  door  of  oppor- 

/    tunity.      Difficulties  vanished  as  they  were  approached,  and  what 

had  seemed  to  be  utterly   impossible   was  accomplished.      As   the 

days  went  by  the  magnitude  of  the  work  was  very  much  increased. 

The  great  buildings  were  secured  in  different  sections  of  the  city, 

theatres,  halls,  churches   and   missions   were    opened.      The    large 

circus  tent   of  Forepaugh  was  also  secured.     Five  other  great  tent 

tabernacles  were   moved   from   section   to   section,    and  sometimes 

great  crowds  assembled  in  the  open  air.      Speakers  were  assigned 

to    these    places,  and    day  after   day  for  months   there  went  out  a 

testimony   for  God   such   as   perhaps   no   other   city  of    the  world 

has  had. 

Song,   a  Feature  of  the  Meetings 

Mr.  Moody  had  surrounded  himself  with  a  company  of  men 
with  whom  it  was  one  of  the  greatest  privileges  to  be  associated. 
The  men  most  used  of  God  in  evangelistic  work  went  there,  as  well 
as  a  large  number  of  others  who  had  been  gifted  with  the  power 
of  Gospel  singing.  The  singing  was  one  of  the  strong  features  in 
all  the  meetings,  and  contributed  largely  to  their  success.  Mr. 
Moody  always  made  the  most  careful  arrangements  for  the  song 
services  in  connection  with  the  meetings.  Indeed  the  singing  was  a 
feature  of  no  small  importance  in  all  these  meetings.  Where  it 
was  possible,  great  choirs  were  organized  under  skilfull  directors, 
and  these,  together  with  great  congregations  who  were  once 
wrought  up  into  the  spirit  of  praise,  would  fill  the  buildings  with 
such    music    as  is  rarely  heard.     Wherever  Mr.  Moody  conducted 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN  249 

evangelistic  services  he  paid  the  same  careful  thougfht  to  the  ser- 
vices  of  praise,  and  the  meetings  in  the  Chicago  campaign  will  by 
many  be  remembered  best  for  the  magnificent  singing. 

As  a  rule  when  the  services  of  the  day  were  over,  Mr.  Moody 
would  meet  with  his  co-workers  at  the  Bible  Institute.  Each 
speaker,  as  he  came  in  from  some  different  section  of  the  city,  would 
be  greeted  with  a  cordial  word  from  Mr.  Moody  and  an  inquiry  as 
to  the  nature  of  the  services.  Almost  without  exception,  the  re- 
ports were  of  the  most  encouraging  character.  Not  only  were  the 
audiences  large,  but  often  the  aisles  were  filled  with  chairs,  great 
crowds  as  well  being-  turned  from  the  doors,  unable  to  gfet  in.  Often 
the  report  was  that  large  numbers  had  definitely  accepted  Christ. 

The  Reports  of  Co-Workers 

At  all  such  reports  Mr.  Moody's  face  would  be  lighted  up 
with  a  look  of  intense  pleasure.  From  the  beginning,  the  only 
reason  that  he  had  for  holding  these  services  was  in  order  that 
sinners  might  be  saved.  While  he  was  always  glad  if  Christians 
were  reached  and  lifted  up  into  a  higher  level  of  experience,  still 
the  deeper  joy  came  to  his  heart  when  some  lost  man  or  woman 
might  be  through  his,  or  his  colleagues',  preaching  led  to  accept 
Christ.  Rarely  an  evening  passed  that  such  news  was  not  brought 
in  to  the  great  joy  of  Mr.  Moody.  God  had  so  singularly  owned 
the  work  from  the  beginning  that  scarcely  a  meeting  passed  with- 
out some  being  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God  to  a  definite  surrender  of 
themselves  to  His  service.  It  was  a  privilege  to  look  upon  Mr. 
Moody's  face  when  these  reports  were  brought  in  by  different 
speakers.  When  the  last  one  had  reported,  the  meetings  would 
close  with  praise  and  prayer.  No  one  who  was  privileged  to  attend 
these  after-services  in  the  Institute  will  ever  forget  the  delight- 
ful fellowship  of  these  godly  men.      They  had  come  from  all  parts 


250  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 

of  the  world.  They  had  been  most  largely  used  of  God,  and  were 
men  of  wide  and  varied  experiences.  The  evening  would  be  spent, 
not  merely  in  the  giving  of  reports  of  the  special  services  from 
which  they  had  come,  but  other  things  drawn  out  of  past  experi- 
ence would  be  brought  in,  so  that  one  would  feel  that  he  was  in 
some  special  way  connected  with  the  carrying  out  of  God's  purpose, 
as  he  might  listen  or  contribute  something  to  these  meetings. 
By  reason  of  the  work  connected  with  the  meetings  them- 
selves, the  men  might  come  in  very  much  exhausted,  yet,  after  such 
a  meeting  as  has  been  spoken  of,  there  would  come  a  sense  of  a  new 
baptism  of  the  Spirit,  and  in  their  waiting  upon  God  there  would 
be  a  renewal  of  strength  for  whatever  service  might  lie  before  them. 

The   Monday  Conferences 

In  accordance  with  the  custom  of  the  Institute,  Mondays  were 
set  aside  as  days  of  conference  and  rest.  Mr.  Moody  would  meet 
the  workers  from  all  parts  of  the  city  and  put  to  them  questions  as 
to  the  results  of  the  week's  work.  These  meetings,  by  reason  of 
the  suggestions  and  comments  that  were  offered,  were  not  only 
deeply  interesting,  but  also  exceedingly  profitable.  Mr.  Moody 
himself  would  put  questions  to  those  who  had  been  conducting  the 
meetings.  He  would  inquire  about  the  progress  of  the  work,  ask 
the  number  of  people  that  had  been  present,  and  how  many  of 
them  had  made  up  their  minds  to  serve  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 
He  would  also  want  to  know  the  different  nationalities  that  might 
be  represented,  as  to  the  proportion  of  the  working  men  and  of  the 
poor,  desiring  to  learn,  if  possible,  how  many  of  those  attending 
were  representatives  of  visitors  to  the  World's  Fair.  Then 
these  workers  would  be  asked  to  give  their  opinion  as  to  the 
value  of  the  meetings  compared  with  others  which  had  been  held 
by   these  same  workers  at  other  places.      Questions  of  this  kind, 


AN  AUTHENTIC  PORTRAIT  OF  D.  L.  MOODY,  from  a  photo- 
graph  taken  in  Paris,  and  loaned  to  one  of  our  authors.  Dr.  H.  M.Wharton, 
by  Mrs.  Moody. 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN  253 

and  answers  given  by  trained  and  skillful  workmen,  would  bring 
out  the  most  useful  suggestions.  It  was  also  discovered  that  at  the 
tents,  congregations  were  a  thousand  or  more  at  the  evening 
services,  and  perhaps  half  as  large  in  the  day  services.  These 
audiences  were  made  up  not  only  of  Protestants  but  also  of  Roman 
Catholics.  In  some  sections,  the  neighborhood  being  almost 
altogether  Roman  Catholic,  perhaps  more  than  three-fourths  of 
the  orreat  audiences  would  belonsr  to  that  faith.  In  some  of  the 
tents  were  large  numbers  of  workingmen  who  would  sit  with 
intense  interest  expressed  in  their  faces,  and  when  the  invitation 
was  eiven,  individuals  among-  these  would  make  decision  for  Christ. 
As  a  rule,  all  the  churches  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the 
tent  meetings  were  in  perfect  sympathy  with  the  work,  the  ministers 
attending  the  meetings  and  sitting  on  the  platform,  and  the  largest 
number  of  workers  were  secured  from  these  churches. 

Meetings  For  Children 

Some  of  the  most  interesting  reports  were  made  concerning 
the  children's  meetings.  Oftentimes  Sunday  school  teachers  would 
be  drawn  to  these  meetings  where  they  would  find  their  classes 
assembled,  and  in  many  instances,  if  the  members  of  the  class  were 
not  reached,  Sunday  school  teachers  would  be,  and  those  who  had 
not  hitherto  made  a  profession  of  faith  would  come  out  definitely 
for  Christ  in  these  meetings. 

.  In  all  the  sections  where  these  meetings  were  held,  the  spiritual 
power  of  the  neighboring  churches  was  intensely  magnified.  The 
prayer  meetings  of  the  local  churches  grew  in  attendance,  and  the 
Sunday  services  were  far  better  attended  than  ever  before. 

It  was  most  interesting  also  to  hear  the  reports  of  the  men 
who  had  charge  of  the  great  meetings  in  the  theatres.  Sometimes,  as 
for  example  at  the  Empire  Theatre,  nearly  the  whole  congregation 


254  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 

would  consist  of  men  only,  and  a  very  large  proportion  of  these 
men  would  be  not  only  out  of  work,  but  drinking  men.  For  these, 
temperance  meetings  were  held,  and  hundreds  of  pledges  were 
signed  by  these  men,  while  hundreds  of  others  yielded  them- 
selves altogether  to  Christ. 

Great  Throngs  at  the  Meetings 

While  there  were  large  audiences  at  nearly  all  the  services, 
some  of  them  reached  enormous  proportions.  Dr.  J.  Munro  Gibson, 
of  London,  Vv^ho  Vs^as  associated  with  Mr,  Moody  in  his  campaign, 
said  on  returning  to  London,  "  While  the  Fair  grounds  were  quite 
deserted  on  Sundays  the  churches  were  full.  There  was  little  use 
trying  to  get  into  the  churches  where  Mr.  Moody  or  Mr.  McNeill 
preached  unless  you  went  an  hour  or  two  before  the  time,  but  even 
with  only  a  preacher  of  ordinary  abilities  the  church  would  be  filled, 
not  only  in  the  morning  but  also  at  the  evening  service,  and 
it  is  not  an  easy  thing  to  secure  a  good  attendance  for  evening  ser- 
vices in  Chicago."  It  was  not  only  on  Sunday  nights,  but  on  week 
nights  as  well.  Many  of  the  great  buildings  were  thronged  long 
before  the  hour  of  opening.  At  the  Haymarket  Theatre,  in  West 
Madison  Street,  where  Mr.  Moody  was  to  preach,  a  great  throng 
would  stand  in  the  streets  long  before  the  doors  were  opened,  and 
when  they  were  opened  every  available  inch  of  space  would  be  filled  in 
an  almost  incredibly  short  time,  and  those  who  failed  to  gain  entrance 
would  be  directed  to  some  place  for  an  overflow  meeting,  to  which, 
however,  they  could  by  no  possibility  be  induced  to  go  until  assured 
that  Mr.  Moody  would  speak  there. 

Perhaps  the  most  extraordinary  meetings  in  point  of  number, 
were  those  held  in  Forepaugh's  circus  tent,  and  those  in  Tattersall's 
Hall.  When  Mr.  Moody  was  arranging  to  secure  the  use  of  the 
mammoth  tent,  he  had  difficulties  in  making  an  agreement  with  the 


THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN  255 

manager,  who  expected  Sunday  to  be  his  great  day  in  Chicago,  but 
he  was  finally  prevailed  upon  to  allow  him  the  use  of  it  for  Sunday 
morning,  reserving  Sunday  afternoon  and  evening  for  his  show. 
When  these  arrangements  were  being  made,  one  of  the  circus  men 
contemptuously  asked  him  if  he  supposed  it  would  be  possible  to 
get  an  audience  of  3,000.  What  must  have  been  his  surprise  when, 
arriving  on  the  scene  Sunday  morning,  he  found  assembled  a 
vast  congregation  of  18,000  people,  whereas  the  attendance  at  the 
circus  in  the  afternoon  and  evening  was  so  poor  that  the  perform- 
ances had  to  be  given  up  altogether  on  Sundays.  This  was  perhaps 
the  greatest  throng  that  attended  any  one  service.  After  an  hour 
of  singing  by  the  great  choir  and  congregation,  Mr.  Moody  spoke 
from  the  text,  "  The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  to  save  that 
which  was  lost."  His  whole  being  seemed  to  be  under  the  control 
of  the  power  and  Spirit  of  God,  and  never  perhaps  did  he  speak 
with  so  much  earnestness  as  to  this  vast  multitude. 

Encouraging  Features  of  the  Work 

It  was  at  this  service  that  the  pathetic  incident  happened  where 
a  little  child  was  lost,  and  Mr.  Moody  taking  the  little  one  in  his  arms 
made  an  effort  to  discover  the  parents.  As  the  anxious  father  made 
his  way  toward  the  platform,  Mr.  Moody,  still  holding  the  child,  said, 
with  tears  streaming  down  his  cheeks,  "this  is  what  Jesus  Christ 
came  to  do,  he  came  to  seek  and  save  sinners,  and  to  restore  them 
to  their  heavenly  Father's  embrace."  It  was  a  most  solemn  service  I 
and  will  never  be  forgotten  by  any  one  who  had  the  privilege  of 
attendinor. 

o 

Toward  the  close  of  the  meetings  Mr.  Moody  said,  "We  have 
to-day  everything  to  encourage  us,  and  nothing  to  discourage  us. 
This  has  been  by  far  the  best  week  we  have  had.  The  Gospel  has 
through  this  agency  been   brought  to    150,000  people   during  the 


256  THE  WORLD'S  FAIR  CAMPAIGN 

week.  I  have  never  seen  greater  eaoferness  to  hear  the  word  of 
God.  The  largest  halls  are  too  small  for  the  crowds  that  come  to 
many  of  the  services.  One  night,  for  instance,  on  my  way  to  the 
Fair  Grounds,  I  beheld  one  of  the  most  beautiful  sights  I  have  ever 
seen  on  earth.  It  was  a  wonderful  display  of  fireworks  and  illum- 
inations, tens  of  thousands  of  people  gazing  on  the  scene.  It 
seemed  useless  to  expect  any  one  to  come  away  from  that  scene  and 
sit  down  in  a  tabernacie  to  hear  the  Gospel ;  but  the  house  was 
filled,  and  we  had  a  blessed  meeting.  The  following  nights  though 
cold  and  rainy,  with  a  damp,  uncomfortable  room,  the  people 
crowded  in  until  every  inch  of  space  was  occupied.  I  thank  God 
that  I  am  living  in  Chicago  to-day  ;  these  have  been  the  happiest 
moments  of  my  life  ;  what  a  work  He  has  given  us  to-day  ;  what 
encouragements  He  has  given  us  ;  how  He  has  blessed  us.  Per- 
haps never  in  your  life  will  some  of  you  have  an  opportunity  to  do 
as  much  for  Christ  as  now. 

Though  it  required  a  vast  sum  of  money,  Mr.  Moody  was  equal 
to  the  occasion,  and  raised  every  dollar.  Northfield  was  deeply  in- 
terested in  the  work,  and  contributed  largely.  The  work  being  pre- 
sented by  Dr.  Gordon,  of  Boston,  a  contribution  of  about  $10,000 
was  sent  to  Mr.  Moody  from  Northfield  after  Dr.  Gordon's  appeal. 
Mr.  Moody  himself  had  great  skill  in  getting  good  collections.  When 
he  had  to  leave  the  Haymarket  Theatre,  he  said  to  the  audience, 
"How  many  people  believe  we  ought  to  go  on?  Just  lift  your 
hands."  And  when  they  had  their  hands  up,  he  said,  "  Now  put 
them  down  deep  into  your  pockets,  and  help  us  to  carry  it  on." 

No  work  of  this  kind  can  be  measured  in  terms  of  money.  I 
am  sure  that  in  the  days  to  come  there  will  still  be  great  harvests 
gathered  from  this  sowing,  and  this  World's  Fair  campaign  will 
doubtless  be  numbered  among  the  greatest  ever  conducted  by 
Mr.  Moody. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Last  Campaign 

iHE  last  public  appearance  of  Mr.  Moody  was  in  Kansas  City, 
Missouri.  He  beg^an  a  series  of  meetings  there  November 
12,  1899.  Earlier  in  the  autumn  a  meeting  of  the  ministers 
of  the  evangelical  churches  had  sent  an  invitation  to  the  great  evan- 
gelist to  captain  a  religious  campaign  in  the  young  and  vigorous 
western  city.  The  preliminary  discussions  of  the  proposed  meet- 
ings afforded  proof  of  the  confidence  reposed  in  Mr.  Moody  by 
many  men  of  many  minds.  About  him  the  religious  forces  of  the 
city  crystallized  with  enthusiasm.  His  name  was  a  power,  making 
for  Christian  unity.  The  executive  committee  of  ministers  repre- 
sented the  Presbyterian,  Methodist.  Episcopal,  Congregational, 
Christian,  Methodist   Episcopal,  South  and   Baptist  denominations. 

How  THE  Expenses  Were  Defrayed. 

When  the  laymen  were  informed  of  the  proposed  meetings  they 
sent  word  to  the  ministers  that  they  would  raise  the  funds  neces- 
sary to  defray  all  expenses — a  pledge  that  was  abundantly  fulfilled. 
Several  of  the  large  business  establishments  announced  that  they 
would  pay  for  one  day  each  the  rental  of  the  hall  where  the  meet- 
ings were  held.  The  general  gratification  over  the  coming  of  Mr. 
Moody  was  a  splendid  testimonial  to  his  recognized  leadership  in 
soul-winning. 

Mr.  Moody  arrived  in  the  city  on  Saturday  morning,  in  readi- 
ness to  inaugurate  the  campaign  on  the  day  following.    Immediately 

(257) 


258  THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 

after  breakfast  he  went  with  members  of  the  local  committee,  to 
have  a  look  at  Convention  Hall,  the  mammoth  building  where  the 
meetings  were  to  be  held.  He  stood  upon  the  stage  and  tried  his 
voice.  He  was  more  than  satisfied  with  the  result,  declaring-  that 
he  had  come  1,500  miles  from  New  York  to  find  the  best  hall  he 
had  spoken  in  in  this  country.  The  hall  had  been  dedicated  only 
in  February  of  that  year.  It  has  a  seating  capacity  of  between 
15,000  and  20,000.  In  the  interior  there  are  four  floors  command- 
ing the  stage,  and  here  the  famous  evangelist  in  his  last  meetings 
preached  the  Gospel  to  some  of  the  largest  audiences  ever  reached 
at  one  time  by  his  voice. 

Mr.   Moody's  Large   Human   Interest. 

One  secret  of  Mr.  Moody's  hold  upon  the  public  was  illustrated 
by  a  characteristic  conversation  on  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit  to 
Convention  Hall.  He  had  a  large  human  interest,  even  in  secular 
movements  and  institutions.  One  of  the  reporters  of  the  party 
said  to  him  :  "  Do  you  know,  Mr.  Moody,  how  this  building  was 
put  up?  Do  you  know  what  it  means  to  this  city?"  "No,"  said 
Mr.  Moody,  "  I  supposed  some  wealthy  man  owned  it."  "  Kansas 
City  owns  it,  "  was  the  answer.  "  Nearly  every  man  and  woman, 
and  hundreds  of  children  contributed  to  its  building,  and  own  stock 
in  it.  It  was  built  by  the  gifts  of  the  poor,  as  well  as  of  the  rich. 
It  was  built  voluntarily  by  the  people,  and  not  by  taxes.  And  it 
stands  to-day  as  it  stood  the  day  it  was  finished,  without  a  dollar  of 
debt." 

At  once  Mr.  Moody  was  intensely  interested  and  demanded 
the  story  of  the  building.  It  was  given  him.  "That  is  the  sort 
of  thing  that  annihilates  anarchy,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  in  a  burst  of 
enthusiasm.  "  When  I  laid  eyes  on  the  hall,  I  said  that  there  was 
no   other   such   hall    in    this   country.     But   now   that    I    know   the 


THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN  259 

sentiment  and  feeling  that  have  been  put  into  the  hall,  I  know  there 
is  no  other  such  building  in  the  world.  Do  you  know  that  when 
men  are  induced  to  unite  as  this  city  has  united,  where  all  classes 
of  people  behave  as  if  they  had  common  interests,  a  great  lesson 
has  been  taught.  The  value  of  your  hall,  it  strikes  me,  is  not  in 
dollars  and  cents,  but  in  its  moral  significance.  I  did  not  believe 
that  such  a  thinor  could  be  done  in  this  g^eneration.  It  has  never 
been  done  before."  It  was  this  cordial  sympathy  and  hearty 
appreciation  of  everything  that  influenced  or  manifested  the  life  of 
a  community  that  made  the  people  feel  that  Mr.  Moody  was  one 
with  them,  and  upon  this  common  ground  of  vantage  he  gained 
the  public  ear  for  his  message. 

The  First  Service  at  Kansas  City. 

The  first  meeting  of  the  memorable  series  was  held  on  Sun- 
day afternoon.  The  singing  was  led  by  a  great  chorus  of  more 
than  500  voices,  organized  for  the  occasion.  This  was  in  charge 
of  Prof.  C.  C.  Case,  who  accompanied  Mr.  Moody.  In  his 
characteristic  way  Mr.  Moody  said,  "  There's  good  material  in 
that  choir.  They  sing  famously  well.  At  first,  I  am  told,  there 
was  some  difference  between  the  Methodists  and  Presbyterians  in 
the  manner  of  their  singing.  The  Methodists  sang  fast,  and  the 
Presbyterians  sang  slow.  The  result  was  peculiar.  But  we  have 
taught  them  to  pull  together  pretty  well  now."  Another  feature 
of  the  singing  that  pleased  Mr.  Moody  was  an  Old  Men's  Quar- 
tette, which  sang  several  times. 

The  happy  faculty  possessed  by  the  evangelist  of  securing 
desired  action  on  the  part  of  a  vast  audience,  was  shown  in  this  first 
meeting  in  connection  with  the  singing.  The  hymns  to  be  used 
were  printed  in  sheet  form,  and  were  in  the  hands  of  the  audience. 
The   noise   made    in   handling   them    threatened    to    drown    the 


26o  THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 

speaker's  voice.     Just   before   he    began   his   sermon    Mr.    Moody 

said  :  "All  who  have  sheet  hymns  please  hold  them  up  high."     At 

once   5,000  hands   were   uplifted,   holding  the    rustling    sheets  of 

paper.     The  effect  was  that  of  a  Chautauqua  salute.     "  Now  shake 

them,"  he  said.     They  all  did,  and  the  result  was  an   indescribably 

noisy  confusion.      "  Now  sit  on  them,"  he   said,  with   a  laugh.      "  I 

only  wanted  you  to  see  what  a  noise  they  would  make,  if  you  kept 

handling  them."     The   result  of  this  felicitous  admonition   was  a 

reign  of  silence. 

The  service  was  to  bep-in  at  three  o'clock,  but  before  that  time 

the  great  auditorium  was  filled,  and  it  was  necessary  to  close  and 

lock  the  doors.     Several  thousand  people  were  turned  away.     At 

night    an    overflow    meeting    crowded    the    Second     Presbyterian 

Church  near  by,  and  great  crowds  of  people  went  home,  unable  to 

get  into  either  meeting.     There  had  been  notable  gatherings  in  the 

great  Convention  Hall  on  former  occasions,  but  even  the  dedication 

services,  with  the  attraction  of  Sousa's  Band  and  the  appeal  to  civic 

pride,  failed  to  bring  together  such  a  throng  as  that  assembled  to 

hear  the  man  of  God  preach  his  plain,  direct  Gospel.      It  was  the 

greatest   meeting    in    point   of   attendance    in    the    history  of   the 

Mississippi  Valley.      It  was  evidence  of  the  fact  that,  as  some  one 

'has  said,  "man  is  incurably  religious,"  and  of  the  further  fact,  that 

there  is  attractiveness  in  the  message  of  a  recognized  ambassador 

for  Christ. 

Deep  Effect  of  the  Opening  Sermons. 

The  subject  of  the  opening  sermons,  afternoon  and  evening, 
was  the  same,  "  Sowing  and  Reaping."  Mr.  Moody  looked  down 
into  the  thousands  of  upturned  faces,  and  amidst  intense  silence, 
began  the  delivery  of  his  last  series  of  sermons  by  saying:  "In 
after  years,  as  you  go  by  this  building,  I  want  you  to  remember 
this  text  that   I   am  going  to  read  to  you.      I  pray  that  God  will 


RECENT  PICTURE  OF  MR.   MOODY  IN   HIS  ROAD  WAGON.     It  was  with  this  wagon  that  the 

noted  preacher  went  to  market,  and  sometimes  met   the  students  at   the  depot  and  hauled  them 

up  to  their  boarding-houses. 


AUDITORIUM    'iALL.      Main  building  of  the  Northfield  Schools 


THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN  ^6^, 

write  It  on  every  heart.  It  appeals  to  men  and  women  of  every 
sort  and  condition  ;  to  the  priests  and  the  ministers  and  the 
reporters  :  '  Be  not  deceived  ;  God  is  not  mocked  :  for  whatsoever 
a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap.  For  he  that  soweth  to  his 
flesh  shall  of  the  flesh  reap  corruption  ;  but  he  that  soweth  to  the 
Spirit  shall  of  the  Spirit  reap  life  everlasting.'  "  Then  followed 
such  a  sermon  as  has  won  thousands  for  Christ.  Terse,  direct  | 
sentences,  freighted  with  convicting  truth,  were  dropped  deliber-( 
ately  from  his  lips.  He  was  the  master  of  the  assemblies.  The 
people  sat  in  rapt  attention,  and  upon  their  faces  could  be  traced 
the  effects  of  varying  phases  of  thought.  Toward  the  close  the 
preacher  made  an  appeal,  tender  as  a  young  mother's  love,  and 
unnoticed  tears  fell  from  thousands  of  eyes.  In  solemn  silence,  at 
the  last,  the  benediction  dismissed  audiences  whose  souls  had  been 
stirred  to  deepest  depths. 

Appeals  to  i^he   Unconverted 

The  meetings  on  Monday  fulfilled  the  expectations  aroused  by 
Sunday's  services.  Following  the  evening  sermon  an  after-meeting 
was  held  in  the  Second  Presbyterian  Church,  just  across  the  street 
from  Convention  Hall.  The  church  was  crowded,  many  standing. 
As  Mr.  Moody  took  his  place,  the  old  hymn,  "Just  as  I  am,"  was 
sung,  and  then,  with  no  preamble,  he  began  one  of  his  face  to  face 
dealings  with  inquirers.  In  a  simple,  conversational  way,  he  pre- 
sented the  truth,  just  as  though  he  were  sitting  by  the  side  of  each 
one  before  him.  He  closed  with  an  effective  incident  from  his 
army  experience,  illustrating  his  appeal.  Then  the  evangelist 
paused  a  moment.  The  church  was  still.  The  ticking  of  the 
clock  could  be  distinctly  heard.      Then  he  spoke  : 

"Will  any  one  say  he  will  trust  Christ  ?  If  so,  say  '  I  will'." 
He  paused,  but  no  reply  came,  and  then  again  he  put  the  question 


264  THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 

quietly,  "  Who  will  say  he  will  trust  Christ  ?"  A  moment  of 
silence  again,  and  far  back  in  the  church  there  came  a  low,  but 
firm,  response,  "  I  will."  At  the  sound  Mr.  Moody  advanced 
quickly  to  the  edge  of  the  platform,  and  with  his  eyes  questioned 
those  before  him.  The  responses  came  fast  and  faster,  and  in  a  few 
minutes  fully  fifty  had  said  "  I  will."  The  after-meeting  on  Tues- 
day evening  was  a  repetition  of  the  one  the  night  before.  It  was 
marked  by  the  conversion  of  one  of  the  most  prominent  business 
men  of  the  city.  His  action,  which  was  without  reserve  of  any 
sort,  made  the  timid  confident,  and  the  result  was  decision  on  the 

part  of  many. 

The  Beginning  of  the  End 

On  Wednesday  came  the  first  indications  of  a  break-down. 
The  great  strain  of  speaking  twice  a  day  in  so  large  a  building  as 
Convention  Hall  began  to  tell  on  Mr.  Moody.  After  the  night 
meeting  he  told  the  ministers  that  he  was  almost  exhausted  ;  that  he 
must  have  some  rest,  and  that  it  would  be  impossible  for  him  to 
lead  the  inquirers'  meeting  in  the  church.  He  went  at  once  to  his 
room  at  the  Coate's  House,  that  he  might  rest  and  be  ready  for  the 
great  meetings  of  the  next  day.  On  Thursday  afternoon  he  gave 
signs  of  exhaustion,  though  anything  like  a  total  physical  collapse 
was  not  apprehended.  To  a  sympathetic  inquiry  on  the  part  of 
one  of  the  city  ministers,  who  asked  him  how  he  felt,  the  answer 
was,  "  Not  big."  At  night  his  appearance  had  changed.  His  face 
was  flushed,  and  he  perspired  profusely.  He  appeared  at  times 
hardly  able  to  support  himself,  and  it  seemed  sometimes  as  though 
he  would  fall  from  weakness.  The  pauses  after  making  his 
telling  points  were  lengthened,  but  otherwise  his  presentation  of 
the  truth  was  as  usual.  "  Then  cometh  the  end."  The  benediction 
was  pronounced.  The  public  personal  work  of  Dwight  L.  Moody 
was  finished. 


THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN  265 

For  tens  of  thousands  of  people  whose  Hves  were  touched  by 
the  evangel  of  this  soul-winner  every  incident  of  that  last  day  will 
possess  a  deep  interest.  There  was  one  circumstance  of  the  after- 
noon that,  in  the  light  of  what  followed,  seemed  prophetic  in  its 
significance.  When  Mr.  Moody  sat  in  his  chair,  so  tired,  during 
the  song  service,  before  beginning  his  sermon,  he  asked  Mr.  Case  to 
sing  "Saved  by  Grace,"  Fanny  J.  Crosby's  beautiful  hymn.      In  it 

is  the  stanza : 

"  Some  day  the  silver  cord  will  break, 

And  I,  no  more,  as  now,  shall  sing  ; 
But  O,  the  joy  when  I  shall  wake 

Within  the  palace  of  the  King. 
Then  I  shall  see  Him,  face  to  face, 
And  tell  the  story.  Saved  by  Grace." 

But  if  Mr.  Moody  had  any  premonition  of  the  approaching  end, 
it  passed  away  as  he  became  possessed  of  his  subject,  "  The  Grace  of 
God."  He  warned  the  older  Christians  to  avoid  living  in  the  past. 
He  denounced  the  pessimistic  tendencies  of  those  who  were  sure 
the  former  days  were  better  than  these.  "  I  have  no  sympathy,"  he 
said,  "with  the  idea  that  our  best  days  are  behind  us.  In  a  hope- 
ful, cheery  mood  he  spoke  of  the  shock  he  had  experienced  some 
time  before,  when  he  picked  up  a  paper  and  saw  himself  alluded  to 
as  "  old  Moody."  "  Why,"  he  said,  "  I'm  not  old.  I'm  only  a  baby 
when  considered  in  comparison  with  the  great  eternity  which  is  to 
come." 

The  last  sermon  on  Thursday  night  was  on  the  parable  of 
"The  Great  Supper."  In  it  he  dealt  especially  with  the  excuses 
men  made  for  staying  out  of  the  Kingdom  of  God.  Mr.  Moody 
closed  his  sermon  in  a  peculiarly  effective  way.  He  said  that,  if  an  ' 
excuse  were  written  out  by  one  of  the  reporters,  asking  God,  "  I 
pray  Thee  have  me  excused  from  the  marriage  feast,"  that  no  one 
in  the  house  would  sign  it.     If  the  note  were  written  to  go  direct  to 


266  THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 

God,  "  I  will  be  there,"  all  would  want  to  sign  it.  *'  Now,"  said  the 
preacher,  "how  many  will  accept  this  invitation?  How  many  will 
say,  '  I  will  ? ' "  Then,  as  a  number  responded,  the  request  was 
repeated.  Still  he  lingered,  his  energies  exhausted,  and  made  one 
more  appeal.  "  I'll  wait  a  few  minutes  longer  to  see  if  anyone 
else,  any  man,  woman  or  child,  will  say  the  word.  I  could  stand 
f    here  all  night  and  listen  to  these  '  I  wills.' "     So  he  went  away  to 

■  his  long  rest  with  the  sound  of  "  I  will "  spoken  by  those  who  were 

■  moved  by  his  words  still  in  his  ears. 

Utterances  During  the  Last  Sermon 

Some  of  the  utterances  of  that  last  day  are  peculiarly  worthy 
of  preservation.  Among  them  were  such  statements  as  these : 
"  I've  worn  God's  yoke  for  over  forty  years,  and  I've  always  found  it 
easy."  "  There's  nothing  sweeter  than  to  obey  God's  will.  He  is 
not  a  severe  task-master."  "You  may  trust  God.  I  can  believe 
in  God  rather  than  in  D.  L.  Moody.  My  heart  has  deceived  me  a 
thousand  times,  but  God  has  never  deceived  me  once."  "  If  you 
have  a  good  impulse  act  on  it.  Don't  be  afraid.  I  say  that  most 
of  the  good  done  in  the  world  is  done  by  men  who  act  on  im- 
I  pulses.  I  am  sixty-two,  and  I  have  acted  on  impulses  all  my  life. 
i  I  never  made  a  mistake  by  acting  on  an  impulse  I  felt  to  be  good." 
"  The  natural  orowth  of  the  Christian  is  toward  more  kindness 
and  a  more  beautiful  nature.  Have  you  ever  noticed  how  many 
old  people  seem  cross  and  crabbed  these  days  ?  That  is  because 
they  have  not  been  good  Christians."  "  I  am  not  old.  I'm  only 
an  infant  compared  with  the  ages  that  will  roll  over  me  when  I 
am  gone."  "  Those  who  live  in  Christ  will  live  forever.  The  glory 
is  not  past,  but  to  come." 

Friday  morning,  toward  noon,  Mr.  Moody  went  out  driving! 
He    came    back   thoroughly    exhausted.      Not    until    then    did    he 


THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN  267 

relinquish  the  hope  of  preaching  that  day.  He  sent  for  one  of  the 
ministers  of  the  committee,  Rev.  Dr.  Matt.  S.  Hughes,  of  the 
Independence  Avenue  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  to  preach  that 
afternoon,  saying,  as  he  made  his  request,  with  a  flash  of  his  old 
spirit,  "  You  Methodists  are  always  prepared  to  preach."  Mr.  , 
Moody  told  those  who  were  near  him  that  he  had  never  felt  so- 
feeble  before.  For  the  first  time  in  forty  years  he  was  obliged  to 
abandon  his  services.  He  had  not  been  able  to  lie  in  bed  for 
three  nights,  but  had  taken  all  his  rest  in  his  chair,  sleeping  only  a 
few  minutes  at  a  time.  It  was  decided,  upon  consultation  with  his 
physician.  Dr.  Schauf^er,  that  he  should  go  home  at  once. 

Mr.  Moody  was  sitting  in  his  armchair.  He  was  breathing 
heavily,  and  his  face  seemed  puffy  and  bloated.  He  said  his  limbs 
were  swelling,  and  he  had  a  feeling  of  oppression  about  his  heart. 
"  I'm  afraid  I  shall  have  to  give  up  the  meetings,"  he  said.  "  It's 
too  bad."  He  was  silent.  "  It's  the  first  time  in  forty  years  of 
preaching  that  I  have  had  to  give  up  my  meetings."  He  did  not 
say  anything  for  a  while.  Then  he  spoke  in  a  low  voice.  "  It  is 
more  painful  to  me  to  give  up  those  audiences  than  it  is  to  suffer 
from  my  ailments."  How  regretfully  he  relinquished  his  labors  ! 
But  he  could  at  least  lay  down  his  life  with  the  knowledge  that  his 
steps  had  never  lagged. 

Back  to  Northfield 

An  effort  was  made  to  get  a  special  car,  but  none  being  avail- 
able at  once,  the  Gospel  car,  "  The  Messenger  of  Peace,"  belonging 
to  the  American  Baptist  Publication  Society,  and  in  charge  of  Rev. 
S.  G.  Neil,  the  railroad  evangelist,  was  offered  for  the  trip  to 
Northfield.  At  nine  o'clock  on  Thursday  evening,  accompanied  by 
a  physician  and  friends,  the  homeward  journey  was  begun.  The 
next  day  a  cheery  telegram  came  from  Mr.  Moody,  saying  that  he 

15 


268  THE  LAST  CAMPAIGN 

had  had  the  best  night  for  a  week,  and  thanking  "  the  good  people 

of  Kansas  City  for  all  their  kindnesses  ". 

Charles  M.  Vining  tells  an  interesting  story  of  the  trip  home 

with  Mr.  Moody.     When  the  train  pulled  into  Detroit  it  was  over 

an  hour  late,  and  unless  at  least  half  of  this  time  could  be  made  up, 

the  eastern  connection  for  the  through   Boston  train  could  not  be 

made.      As   the  train   was  standing   in   the   station  at  Detroit,  the 

engineer  came  back  along  the  train  until  he  reached  the  Gospel 

car.      "  Whose  car  is  this  ?"    he  asked  one  of   the   party  who  was 

standing  outside.      "  It's  a  special  taking  Mr.  Moody,  the  evangelist, 

to  his  home,"  was   the   reply.      "  Where   has  he  been  ?"  came  the 

question.     "  He  was  holding  meetings  in  Kansas  City,  where  he 

was  taken  ill,  and  now  we  are  taking  him  home.     We  are  about  an 

hour  late,  and  if  we  don't  make  up  the  time,  we  won't  make  the 

I  proper  connections  for  Boston."     "  Look  here,"  said  the  engineer, 

"  fifteen  years  ago  I  was  converted  by  Moody,  and  I  have  lived  a 

better  and  happier  life  ever  since.      I  didn't  know  Moody's  car  was 

on  to-night,  but  if  you  want  me  to  make  up  the  time  for  you  I'll  do 

it.     Just  tell  Mr.  Moody  that  one  of  his  friends  is  on  the  engine 

and  then  hold  your  breath."     As  soon  as  the  train  got  clear  of  the 

city  the  engineer  pulled  the  throttle  open,  and  it  is  said  that  he 

made  the  fastest  time  ever  made  over  this  division.     Connections 

were  made,  and  when  the  party  awakened  the  next  morning  they 

were  on  the  Boston  train.     When  Mr.  Vining  left  East  Northfield 

for  Kansas   City,  Mr.  Moody  said  :     "  Tell  them  they  have  caged 

the  old  lion  at  last." 

t  While    the    influences    of    his   work  were   still    active    in    the 

f 

f  churches  of  the  city,  came  the  tidings  that  he  had  entered  into  rest, 

1  and  Kansas  City,  the  recipient  of  his  latest  toil,  bovv^ed  its  head  in 

'  sorrow    over    the    common    bereavement    that    had    come    to    the 

Christian  world. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Mr.  Moody  as  an  Evangelist 

IN  the  ancient  Church  there  were  men  whose  special  call  and 
labors  were  to  save  her  decaying  life  from  extinction,  and  rein- 
force it  with  fresh  spiritual  power.  If  time  permitted,  the  names 
of  patriarchs  and  prophets  in  the  Old  Testament  might  be  men- 
tioned, and  the  names  of  New  Testament  apostles  might  be 
spoken,  for  all  of  these  were  evangelists  in  the  truest  sense  of  the 
word.  The  word  "evangelist"  means  "the  bringer  of  good  tid- 
ings." This  being  true,  D.  L.  Moody  was  an  evangelist  in  the 
truest  sense  of  the  word.  The  office,  being  of  divine  appointment 
is  distinct  from  that  of  the  pastor,  the  teacher,  and  the  prophet,  and 
as  a  rule  in  all  the  history  of  the  Church  has  been  given  to  those 
who  have  no  stated  pastoral  charge,  but  have  traveled  from,  place 
to  place  as  they  had  opportunity  to  work. 

He  Led  Them  to  Christ 

Among  all  the  men  whom  the  world  has  ever  known  as  evan- 
gelists D.  L.  Moody  takes  no  secondary  place.  One  has  but  to 
study  the  history  of  the  Church  to  learn  the  value  of  regligious 
awakenings  in  general,  and  he  who  states  that  their  effect  upon  the 
Church  is  not  helpful  makes  a  statement  which  cannot  be  supported 
by  the  facts.  I  once  heard  Mr.  Moody  say  that  when  some  one  in 
the  City  of  Boston  had  criticised  the  meetings  he  had  held,  he 
determined  that  he  would  go  back  to  the  city  and  call  for  all  those 
who  had  been  converted  in  his  meetings  to  be  present  at  a  service 

269 


270  MR.  MOODY  AS  AM  EVANGELIST 

which  he  would  announce.  The  great  building  was  filled  to  over- 
flowing and  at  least  ten  years  after  his  services  had  closed  he  had 
the  joy  of  hearing  literally  thousands  give  testimony  to  the  fact 
that  he  had  led  them  to  Christ. 

A  little  before  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  began 
what  may  be  called  the  First  Era  of  Revivals  in  this  country,  part 
of  a  religious  movement  that  affected  and  moulded  in  a  most  re- 
markable manner  the  entire  English-speaking  world  for  three- 
quarters  of  a  century. 

The  leaders  of  this  movement  in  England  were  Whitefield  and 
the  Wesleys.     The  leader  in  America  was  Jonathan  Edwards. 

Remarkable  Revivals  in  America 

*  "  The  second  Era  of  Revivals  in  this  country  dates  from 
about  1797.  Among  the  honored  leaders  in  the  earlier  phase  of 
the  movement  were  Dr.  Edward  Dorr  Griffin,  and  President 
Dwigfht,  associated  with  such  men  as  the  elder  Mills,  In  its  later 
phase,  in  what  may  be  called  the  supplement  to  the  Revival  of 
1797,  the  revivalists  Nettleton  and  Finney  were  prominent." 

It  is  an  interesting  fact  in  revivals  that  they  frequently  succeed 
some  great  calamity.  It  was  so  with  the  wonderful  work  of  grace 
known  as  The  Revival  of  1859.  ^^^  churches,  to  an  alarming 
extent,  were  characterized  by  indifference  and  conformity  to  the 
world.  Speculation  was  running  rife,  and  men  were  entering 
recklessly  in  the  race  for  riches.  As  a  natural  result,  frauds  and  fail- 
ures were  very  common,  and  in  a  day  the  most  fanciful  dreams 
would  perish  and  millionaires  would  become  paupers. 

But  God  was  working  in  it  all,  and  as  a  direct  result  there 
was  a  call  sent  forth  to  the  Christians  of  the  Nation  for  united 
prayer,  and  the  result  was  the  mighty  awakening. 

*'•  The  Church  in  America  and  its  baptisms  of  fire,"'  by  D.  S.  Gregory. 


(Copyright.) 


...>.T/^  tM  rr»nPF, 


U  UNION  HALL,  NEW^YORK    IN^xSge^^^ 


MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST  273 

Its  history  can  never  be  known  perfectly.  It  is  written  in  Hea- 
ven, and  when  we  stand  there  we  shall  know  the  full  story. 

But  no  history  of  revivals  in  this  generation  would  be  complete 
without  due  consideration  being  given  to  the  man  whose  name  is  a 
household  word,  and  who  has  been  a  blessing  to  Christians  through- 
out the  world,  Mr.  Dwight  L.  Moody. 

Mr.  Moody  may  be  regarded  as  being,  in  his  career  and 
work,  the  representative  of  lay  activity  in  the  work  of  evangeliza- 
tion— especially  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association  as 
embodying  and  organizing  this  activity.  That  association  had 
largely  to  do  with  opening  the  way  for  him  into  the  various 
churches  and  communities  in  the  early  stages  of  his  work,  and  with 
awakening  and  sustaining  enthusiasm   in   his  various  evangelistic 

enterprises 

Representative  Evangelists 

It  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  men  more  unlike  than  these 
representative  evangelists.  Jonathan  Edwards  was  a  mighty  logi- 
cian, and'his  great  theme  was  The  sovereignty  of  God's  Grace  in  the 
Salvation  of  Sinners. 

His  sermons  stirred  the  souls  of  men  to  their  very  depths,  and 
sometimes  resulted  in  remarkable  outward  manifestations  of  feel- 
ing, as  when,  during  the  preaching  at  Enfield,  of  the  sermon  enti- 
tled '  Sinners  in  the  Hands  of  an  Angry  God,'  the  audience  rose 
up  in  agony  to  cry  out  for  mercy. 

George  Whitefield  was  an  orator  of  great  power.  Indeed, 
many  of  those  who  heard  Whitefield  regarded  him  as  the  most 
eloquent  of  men,  and  the  traditions  of  the  remarkable  effects 
produced,  not  only  by  his  sermons  but  by  the  very  tones  of  his 
voice,  are  still  handed  down. 

Dr.  Asahel  Nettleton  was  very  different  from  either  of  the 
two  just  mentioned.  The  following  general  estimate  of  his  life  has 
been  given  by  some  one  : 


274  MR-  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST 

Dr.  Nettleton's  life  was  marvelously  useful  and  helpful.  I 
never  heard  the  opinion  expressed  that  he  was  either  a  great  or  a 
verv  learned  man  ;  but  I  never  heard  those  who  knew  him  inti- 
mately  question  his  goodness.  He  was  a  most  godly  man,  serious, 
circumspect,  discreet,  and  gifted  with  rare  discrimination,  enabling 
him  to  know  and  read  men,  and  greatly  aiding  him  to  adapt  himself 
and  his  instructions  to  men  in  their  various  moods,  with  their  dif- 
ferent peculiarities,  prejudices,  conditions,  and  prepossessions.  He 
had  power  to  prevail  with  God  and  man.  His  rare  success  is  not 
to  be  attributed  to  his  greatness,  nor  to  his  native  sagacity,  nor  to 
the  happy  combination  of  gifts  constitutional  or  natural,  nor  to 
everything  combined  in  him,  so  much  as  to  his  holiness.  He  walked 
with  God,  knew  and  trusted  God.  He  had  a  mighty  faith.  He 
found  out  how  much  God  loved  men,  and  he  was  brought  into 
sympathy  with  God  for  the  salvation  of  men.  His  perception  of 
the  guilt  and  doom  of  sinners  was  intense  and  absorbed  him.  He 
was  a  man  whose  religious  development  would  lead  him  to  cry  out 
while  prostrated  on  the  cold  ground  at   the   midnight  hour,  "  Give 

me  souls  or  I  die  !  " 

Charles  G.   Finney 

Charles  G.  Finney  was  still  another  type  of  man,  but  few 
men  have  been  more  mightily  used  of  God  than  he.  Sometimes  he 
could  proceed  no  farther  in  the  service  than  the  reading  of  his  text 
when  the  power  of  God  would  fall  upon  his  audience  and  scores  of 
people  would  profess  conversion. 

But  with  all  their  greatness  none  of  them  outshine  Dwight  L. 
Moody,  who  stands  out  among  all  men  as  God's  chosen  instrument 
to  show  what  one  consecrated  layman  may  accomplish  when  filled 
with  the  Holy  Ghost. 

He  was  mightily  moved  when  Henry  Varley,  the  English 
evangelist,  said  to   him  as  they  were      visiting  at  a  friend's  house 


MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST  275 

together  in  England  some  years  ago  :  "It  remains  for  the  world  to 
see  what  the  Lord  can  do  with  a  man  wholly  consecrated  to 
Christ."  Mr.  Moody  soon  returned  to  America,  but  those  words 
clung  to  him  with  such  power  that  he  was  induced  to  return  to 
England  and  commence  that  wonderful  series  of  labors  in  Scotland 
and  England.  Mr.  Moody  said  to  Henry  Varley  on  returning  to 
England, "  Those  were  the  words  of  the  Lord  through  your  lips  to 
my  soul." 

Strangers  sometimes  thought  him  difficult  to  approach,  and  he 
was,  if  you  were  trying  to  seek  him  out  to  say  flattering  words  to 
him  ;  but  no  man  in  all  the  world  was  more  approachable  than  he 
when  he  knew  that  you  had  an  unselfish  desire  with  him  to  extend 
the  bounds  of  the  Kino-dom  of  God, 

Especially  Adapted  to  His  Work 
Mr.  Moody  was  especially  adapted  to  his  work,  first,  because 
he  was  pre-eminently  practical  in  this  practical  age.  He  was  most 
direct  in  his  speech  ;  every  one  knew  exactly  what  he  meant  ;  there 
was  no  mistake  in  his  utterance.  His  energy  was  literally  bound- 
less ;  day  and  night  and  night  and  day  he  toiled,  never  seeming  to  be 
weary.  His  earnestness  and  enthusiasm  were  contagious  and  wher- 
ever he  found  an  audience  dull  and  lifeless  he  had  only  to  speak  to 
them  a  few  minutes  until  they  were  ready  to  do  anything  that  hefi 
might  command.  He  preached  to  larger  crowds  than  any  man  ini 
his  generation,  and  yet  it  was  ever  his  object  and  aim  to  reach  the  H) 
individual  rather  than  the  people  in  a  mass.  He  was  a  born  organ- 
izer, and  in  this  century  which  has  been  specially  distinguished  for 
its  progress  in  organization  he  took  high  rank.  He  was  the  world's 
greatest  evangelist  because  with  all  these  qualities  he  knew  men 
through  and  through,  and  he  was  able  to  move  them  at  his  own  will. 


276  MR,  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST 

A  distinguished  southern  Presbyterian  minister  writes  me  the 
following,  which  illustrates  my  thought. 

"  I  first  knew  Mr.  Moody  in  Louisville,  Kentucky  during  a 
great  campaign  that  he  was  conducting  there.  I  first  had  some 
conversation  with  him  in  regard  to  some  work  which  we  were 
setting  on  foot  at  the  time.  I  found  him  a  most  sympathetic 
listener,  and  wonderfully  helpful,  but  the  moment  any  allusion  was 
made  to  his  own  work,  and  what  great  things  it  was  doing  for 
Louisville  he  instantly  shifted  the  conversation. 

An  Embarrassing  Incident 

"  After  the  work  had  been  in  progress  for  some  days,  and  the 
great  Tabernacle  on  Broadway  had  been  crowded  from  day  to  day, 
and  at  every  meeting,  an  incident  occurred  which  troubled  me 
greatly,  and  which  I  did  not  fully  understand  until  many  months 
later.  The  after-meeting  was  held  one  morning  in  the  Warren 
Memorial  Church.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  service  a  great  many 
workers  in  the  meeting  tarried  for  a  moment  of  conference.  A 
gentleman  approached  Mr.  Moody,  '  See  this  group  of  ladies  on 
the  right  of  the  platform,  they  are  among  our  prominent  women  of 
the  City,  and  supports  of  our  movement,  both  with  their  means  and 
their  personal  work.  They  have  not  yet  had  the  pleasure  of  shaking 
hands  with  you,  and  they  have  tarried  for  this  purpose.'  'Where 
are  they?'  asked  Mr.  Moody.  The  gentleman  pointed  them  out, 
saying,  '  I  will  tell  them  you  will  see  them  in  a  few  moments.' 
And  in  a  little  while  I  saw  Mr.  Moody  reach  under  the  pulpit 
stand  for  his  little  felt  hat,  go  out  a  back  door,  and  taking  a  cab, 
drive  to  his  hotel. 

"  The  ladies  waited  for  some  time,  and  finally  left  with  the 
greatest  feeling  of  indignation,  and  many,  of  them,  declaring  that 
they  would  not  again  be  seen  in  the  meetings,  and  work  with  a 


MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST  277 

man  who  could  be  so  rude.  I  confessed  I  was  puzzled  myself,  and 
did  not  know  what  explanation  could  possibly  be  offered  for  the 
strange  action. 

"  Some  year  or  so  after  this  I  was  in  Chicago  with  him  on  the 
platform.  Again  a  woman  came  to  the  foot  of  the  stair,  and  said 
she  wished  to  see  Mr.  Moody.  '  He  was  used  of  God  for  the  sal- 
vation of  my  husband,  I  want  to  shake  hands  with  him,  and  tell 
him  how  grateful  I  feel  toward  him.'  I  said,  'Why  certainly,  wait 
and  I  will  see  that  you  have  the  privilege  of  seeing  him,'  when 
finally  I  called  his  attention  to  her,  and  when  she  had  given  him 
her  reason  for  wishing  to  shake  hands  with  him,  without  one  word 
he  turned  and  left  her.  Again,  I  thought,  here  is  a  type  of  the 
same  thing    we    saw     in  Louisville.      I  comforted  the  poor  woman 

as  best  I  could. 

Guard  Against  Flattery 

"  A  few  days  later  in  his  conference  with  young  men,  he  spoke 
of  how  we  should  guard  against  flattery,  and  how  many  strange 
things  we  had  to  do,  to  prevent  the  devil's  getting  a  hold  upon  us. 
After  this  conversation  I  told  him  of  the  injustice  I  had  done  him/ 
in  my  mind,  in  the  incidents  above  alluded  to.      His   explanation^ 
was  very  brief,  but  equally  satisfactory  and  to  the  point.      '  If  I  had  / 
shaken  hands  with  those  women,  I  wouldn't  have  been  half  through 
before  the  devil  would  have  made  me  believe  that   I   was   some] 
great  man,  and  from  that  time  I  would  have  to  do  as  h.t  bid. 

"  I  was  present  with  him  in  a  meeting  for  a  month  after  this 
time,  and  studied  him  in  the  light  of  this  explanation,  and  no  one 
thing  has  ever  helped  me  more  to  explain  his  closeness  to  God,  and 
his  humility  of  Spirit  than  the  facts  alluded  to." 

His  messages  had  no  uncertain  sound,  concerning  the  Gospel.     \ 

He  believed  that  men  were  lost  without  Christ.  He  told  the 
story  of  the  mother  who  came  into  the  Eye   Infirmary  in  Chicago     j 


278  MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST 

and    said  :    "  Doctor,    there    is  something  wrong    with    my  baby's 

eyes."    He  described  how  the  doctor  took  the  child  in  his  arms  and 

carried  it  to  the  window,  looked  at  the  eyes  only  a  moment,  then, 

shaking  his  head,  gave  the  child  back  again  to  its  mother,     "  Well, 

Doctor,  what  is  it?"  she  said.     "Poor  woman"  he  replied,   "your 

baby  is  going  blind  ;  in  three  months'  time  he  will  be  stone  blind, 

and  no  power  on  earth  can  ever  make  him  see."     Mr.  Moody  told 

how  the  mother  held  the  baby  close  against  her  heart  and  then  fell 

on  the  floor  with  a  shriek,  crying  out,  "  My  God  !  My  baby  blind  ! 

My  baby  blind !" 

On  Sudden  Conversion 

I  can  see  his  face  now  as  he  said,  the  tears  rolling  down  his 
cheeks :  "  Would  to  God,  we  might  all  be  as  much  moved  as  that 
when  we  know  that  our  friends  are  spiritually  blind  as  well  as  lost !  " 
Because  he  believed  this,  he  preached  as  he  did,  and  it  was  this 
spirit  that  literally  drove  him  to  Kansas  City  to  preach  his  last 
sermon,  and  then  turn  his  face  home  to  die.  He  believed  in  instan- 
taneous conversion  ;  he  had  no  patience  at  all  with  the  man  who 
thought  he  must  grow  better  to  be  saved.      He  once  said  : 

"  When  Mr.  Sankey  and  myself  were  in  one  place  in  Europe,  a 
man  preached  a  sermon  against  the  pernicious  doctrines  that  we 
were  going  to  preach,  one  of  which  was  sudden  conversion.  He 
said  conversion  was  a  matter  of  time  and  growth.  Do  you  know 
what  I  do  when  any  man  preaches  against  the  doctrines  I  preach  ? 
I  go  to  the  Bible  and  find  out  what  it  says,  and  if  I  am  right  I  give 
them  more  of  the  same  kind.  I  preached  more  on  sudden  conver- 
sion in  that  town  than  in  any  town  I  was  in,  in  my  life.  I  would 
like  to  know  how  long  it  took  the  Lord  to  convert  Zaccheus  ? 
How  longr  did  it  take  the  Lord  to  convert  that  woman  whom  He 
met  at  the  well  of  Sychar  ?  How  long  to  convert  that  adulterous 
woman  in  the  temple,  who  was  caught  in  the  very  act  of  adultery  ? 


MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST  279 

How  long  to  convert  that  woman  who  anointed  His  feet  and  wiped 
them  with  the  hairs  of  her  head?  Didn't  she  go  with  the  Word  of 
God  ringing  in  her  ears,  '  Go  in  peace  ?'  " 

He  was  a  master  in  the  conduct  of  evanofelistic  meetincrs.  I 
well  remember,  during  the  recent  Armenian  massacres,  some  one 
interrupted  him  in  one  of  his  services,  saying,  "  Mr.  Moody,  I  want 
to  ask  permission  to  present  a  petition,  and  to  ask  the  people  to 
sign  it.  This  petition  is  to  be  sent  to  the  President  of  the  United 
States,  asking  him  to  take  some  action  which  may  help  to  stop  this 
dreadful  slaughter  of  innocent  people." 

The  man  who  made  the  request,  was  of  considerable  promi- 
nence, and  many  a  leader  would  have  yielded  to  his  entreaty. 

A  Better  Plan 

But  Mr.  Moody  was  always  true  to  his  convictions,  and  said, 
"  My  friend,  I  have  a  better  plan  than  yours.  I  always  believe  in 
approaching  any  difficulty  by  the  way  of  the  throne  of  God.  Will 
some  one  lead  us  in  prayer?"  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  there 
was  no  petition  presented,  and  everybody  was  satisfied,  that  his 
was  the  better  way. 

He  was  at  his  best  in  the  Inquiry  Meeting.  He  knew  just 
what  Scripture  to  use,  and  it  was  a  rare  privilege  to  be  anywhere 
near  him  when  he  talked  with  one  who  wanted  to  be  a  Christian. 

He  was  never  easily  discouraged  ;  circumstances  that  would 
greatly  hinder  others,  had  no  effect  upon  him,  except  to  lead  him 
closer  to  Christ.  Mr.  William  Phillips  Hall,  the  Business  Men's 
Evangelist,  relates  the  following  : 

In  Mr.  Moody's  early  evangelistic  career,  he  began  a  series  of 
meetings  in  a  church  across  the  sea.  There  was  nothing  remarkable 
about  the  first  service  except  that  it  was  formal  and  cold.  In  the 
evening  the  attendance  had  increased,  and  when  the  invitation  was 


280  MR.  MOODY  AS  AN  EVANGELIST 

given  to  those  to  stand,  who  desired  to  express  an  interest  in  their 

souls'  salvation,  so  many  stood  that  the  evangelist  feared  they  had 

not  understood  his  invitation,  so  he  gave  it  again  more  plainly,  only 

to  have  a  larger  number  stand.      And  when  the  after-meeting;  was 

called,  there  was  a  most  remarkable  manifestation  of  the  power  of 

God,  and  it  was  the  beginning  of  a  great  and  memorable  work  of 

(jrace. 

An   Incident  From   His   Early  Career 

One  of  the  members  of  that  church  went  home  to  tell  an 
invalid  member  of  the  family,  that  two  Americans,  by  the  names  of 
Moody  and  Sankey,  had  conducted  services  in  the  church  that  day. 
The  invalid  burst  into  tears,  and  reaching  for  her  purse  took  out  a 
piece  of  an  English  newspaper,  which  contained  the  large  announce- 
ment that  Dwight  L.  Moody  and  Ira  D.  Sankey  were  being 
greatly  used  of  God  in  Chicago.  So  she  had  read  it  and  had  cut 
it  out  of  the  paper,  and  from  that  moment  began  to  pray  that  God 
would  send  those  two  men  to  her  church. 

I  have  heard  Mr.  Moody  relate  the  incident  myself  and  then 
say  : 

"  I  believe  when  the  rewards  are  given  out  in-  Heaven,  that 
that  invalid  woman  will  share  with  us  in  the  glory  and  honor  of 
that  grand  campaign." 

No  one  this  side  of  Heaven  can  ever  estimate  the  number  of 
people  he  won  to  Christ  in  his  evangelistic  services.  It  has  been 
estimated  that  he  preached  to  millions.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  he 
must,  under  the  power  of  God,  have  led  hundreds  of  thousands  to 
a  decision. 


N  Hk    \\va\    ,1-.v,i;,ii,"    in    tho   5>yrrt  pLv-e-^  ;-■, 

(W  of  til...  M-<t  II. -h,  «i.:.ll  ''libido  under  the       ' 

•  8h..idow'ot  (l..'Ai.ni,'iit.v                        .             |P"  ■' 

U,  2  1  will    6uy  of    tl.o   LOBP,   //'•    '^^    my     r  ra. 

■  ^  —/•-._.     — J    —    fortress      n  \     > '            '"'     ,  rer 


<S^  refuge,    nnd    my    fc 
\V   !,im  will  I  trust 
>        a  Surely''    be    sli 


,     1.!    i: 
M  the 
(of  <^ur  I 
U  1 


ill    fleln   r    t  ir     i    .«l3  1-4 

f    t'    r» 


U     1 
! 

'  Ir   1 


y  t  1 


A   ourei^  -     tiu     31111..     ..*,...    .      - 
.  «    the    snaro    of    tlic   fo«Ur,   a>i     r     \    ti 

X    noisome  w  till,  n  l 
,    ^        4  JIc  shitll  co\tr  tlict  nilh   1 

VI      and  under  his  wi  i        1         '       ' 

\    \.rMW\  shall  If  I h  '    ,    , 

^kK*    terror   by  ui>,lit,  h«    1  r   t  i 

^        G  iV/r    fcr   the    pest'  n        /'  1 

^    in  darkness:.     „  „   (   i    tU    I    tru  l         i      ( 

^    "r"X'!w,".?l  Villi    .t,1 
^    ten   thonsan  .   at    tU  t    1     li      /        >! 

X    shall  not  corl.(nl^,ll  UK  ,  .i    „  1  e 

X%    liold,  an.l  sc  t  he  r  «  ir  1     ft  Ii     ^^     k^K 
nJ       9   J5ecau.so  th(U   hi.t   u"^--.'''^,   ,1 

^  u-'iivh  h  mi  rthifcc.  ni-n  lac  ilo-t  ili,a 
.  ~i    t!iv  hubitation,  ,  ,    r  n  .1  1 

i       iO  There- sh, 11  n-.OMlI>  fill  tic-   n 
^*\lui!l  any  pi  1  u  ..  r  Ji  thv  d^ 

^^11  For"  h      h  U  Mve  b.s  mi. 
-^  over  thee,  tt  kii-p  thtt  m  ill  'h\  «  i 

S      I->XbevEhill  btar  Ukc  upiu/  .i    11  ,   ^     « 

v,f  lost  thou" da  h  thy  fo^t  at,  un-t  <i  etou  ,       .  ,    ' 

^      13  Thou'  sh  .It  tr.a  i  upon  the  Ik  n  ir  1     -|  ' 
\|  K  adder;    the  v  un.   li  )U    mJ  the   dr  i        |  ^•^'^^ 

•  ^-i  Becaus.    ht    hith       t   h  s   1  )v     »  p     1  ,  j,  , 

fegfert*f^rt^al^|-» 

15   iJe»  shall  call  upon  mo,  ^ai-LSiii^  v>Fr 

,  p,..i„,  ,-.  ^.,r:  ,  i;,r  the  S:iU..ilh  .l^v.  ■  fc^e.  .vl.  21 

J2^.t':r  -«-lh:u.ksu,d,y^|l;.K:.i.. 

the  LoriF,^  -,'   prai.e^   unto   lb,     ^    ,  ;,,, 

uarae,  O  .'.1  >  ^  ....  ■  ^ 

2  To  shew  iorlh   ti,.. 
the  moniing,"  a;"!  t!i)  :  ^ 
^■M,  .    ,  .   ,         ,      . 

•;  Lpon  an.  instrumcut  o!    i.!i    sa.:;- 
;.:.  1   iip«n  tho  psaltery;   ''ui-,'!!   i!n:  I'.i,  - 
wiih  "a  flolmnti  souikI. 

4  For  tlioii,  LoKO,  li  I't  '■ 
throuKli  tliJ'  work;  1  «iil  '■•■■ 
work^  of  tliy  hniid.i. 

5  ()  Loud,  how  gr    ' 
anJ  thy  thoiiijhU' are  vi 

6  A  brutish  man  kn- 
doth  a  fool  litKleratriii.l  ' 

7  \VI)nn»    the    wi'k 
pr.w*,  nnd  when  ail  llir  ,.     ^    ,, 
<|.)   (louriill,   il    is   lli:i!                                             ^,  j',,  ;V[^ 
Ktroyeil  forever:  M  ,!    i   i 

8  JJut   tliou,  Iioun, 
cfonnorf;. 

y  I'or,  !o,  tliins  ori' 

.     !  •  :in'    clietnli'il     'h.ill     ;•'  ' 
• ..   ,  •  if  iKi'inify  rh.ill  l«'  1" 
■ ,  ,f,    !!)y  iiorii    (t'l '.'!    ! 


\i  ^r  \CUT. 

tb,     Ifl    is    el..tlavl 

iti)  IS  elothed  with 

1      hith  eirded  hiin- 

j  stabhshed,  that  it 

estihushcd  'of  old: 

It 
lilu  1  up,  0   I.or.i), 
I  lip  tlieir  voice ;  tiio 

1  lull  IS  nuKhtier  than 
jt(.rs,  yea,  than  l::o 


-1  1 

O  lorn 


lb 


0  (    1   1 


^    1     t    m    tl  \s         t!     I    jiid-e  •{  tho 
ir  h    itn  1  f  a  1    \   >•  I  t    to  linoid. 

1  OUP     h  1  ni,'    -.h   1!    the    «io!;r  I, 

ho«  1to>,    111    hi  wkU  I  triumph  ? 
4  7/       /    )/     h  U  tho   uttef  aad  speak 
/       1    tl       .vorkevs  of  ir.;- 


i,e»    ih.-it    I.  I 
,'  !ie  k'ltrnr  I 

nowelli   the   tboi;^u!J  el 
'  vanity, 
the    man   whom   then 
';    'un,   ami    lv':iehe*t  hi;ii 

0  lyest  t;ive  him  rost  fioiu 

1  isitv,    liutii    t'.ie  \.\\   \< 

i..-a.' 

:MU»  will  not  e.ist  off  hi«- 
M  111    he    r>ir.-^:iki>   his  in- 

iMit     !»h:iU     return    unlft 
i     :a!.l    nil    the    Uir;<ht    iu 
f.dhnv  it. 
.:\,   li>e  l;p  f-r  ti:-   :!  -^--t   tVo 

It  11!  inii,u.'.  ' 

1  .;.;'■   ■.. 


JS 


'% 

^ 


A  PAGE   FROM   MR.  MOODY'S  BIBLE    containing  the  ox.^  Psalm  with  bi^ 
It  was  from  this  page  that  Mr.  Moody  P-^t^^d  his  famous     Li^e  -d JDe-^h     sej-,^^.^  ^^^^^,^^  ^^e  Atlantic 
.h!>t  hp  snnke  to  the  nassensers  on  board  the  steamship  :^pree  in   i'""*': t  „„^,  ,„  f„„nHpr       Photoeraph  was 


CHAPTER  XX 

His  Bible 

MR.  MOODY  loved  his  Bible.  He  knew  it  so  well  that  his 
eyes  and  fingers  could  find  any  passage  that  he  wanted 
from  Genesis  to  Revelation,  and  it  mattered  not  how  hur- 
riedly he  was  speaking,  it  was  as  easy  for  him  to  find  the  text  he 
wished  as  for  the  master  musician  to  find  the  notes  on  the  key- 
board of  a  piano,  and  yet,  he  tells  us  himself  that,  when  he  first 
entered  the  Sunday-school  class  in  Boston,  he  did  not  know  the 
difference  between  the  Old  Testament  and  the  New, 

More  Than   Precious  to   Him 

The  Bible  as  a  book  was  more  than  precious  to  him.  His 
own  Bible  was  a  storehouse  of  richest  treasure.  He  was  never 
heard  even  by  his  closest  friends  to  make  a  play  on  Bible  words 
and  phrases,  and  he  was  always  quick  to  rebuke  those  who  did. 
He  really  had  no  patience  at  all  with  the  so-called  higher  criticism 
of  God's  word.  He  was  one  day  approached  by  a  newspaper 
reporter  who  asked  for  some  word  from  him  regarding  the  higher 
criticism.  "  I'm  not  up  to  that  sort  of  thing,"  he  said,  with  a 
twinkle  in  his  eye.  "You  see,  I  never  studied  theology,  and  I'm 
precious  glad  I  didn't.  There  are  so  many  things  in  the  Bible  that 
everybody  can  understand  that  I'm  going  to  preach  about  them 
until  they  are  exhausted,  and  then.  If  I  have  any  time  left,  I'll  take  up 
the  texts  I  don't  understand."  "Aren't  you  ever  asked  to  discuss 
difficult  passages  of  Scripture?"  was  the  inquiry.      "Mercy,   yes," 

283 


284  HIS  BIBLE 

answered  Mr.  Moody,  "  almost  every  day,  but  I  always  answer 
people  just  as  I  have  answered  you,  and  tell  them  that  there  is 
satisfaction  and  consolation  enough  in  the  promises  of  the  Saviour, 
all  that  anybody  can  want.  The  single  verse,  '  Come  unto  Me,  all 
ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden  and  I  will  give  you  rest,'  con- 
tains all  the  theology  and  religion  that  I  need,  or  any  other  man 
or  woman." 

The  page  taken  from  the  Bible  he  studied,  and  giving  us  a 
picture  of  his  notes  made  on  the  ninety-first  Psalm,  is  but  an  illustra- 
tion of  the  entire  book.  Almost  every  page  contained  an  illustration 
or  reference  to  an  incident  which  shed  light  upon  the  truth  of  God. 

A  Valuable  Advice 

Years  ago  Harry  Moorehouse,  the  English  Bible  reader,  said  to 
him  while  visiting  his  church  in  Chicago,  "If  you  will  stop  preach- 
ing your  own  words  and  preach  God's  Word,  you  will  make 
yourself  a  great  power  for  good."  This  prophecy  made  a  deep 
impression  on  Mr.  Moody's  mind,  and  from  that  day  he  devoted 
himself  to  the  study  of  the  Bible  as  he  had  never  done  before. 
He  had  been  accustomed  to  draw  his  sermons  from  the  experiences 
of  Christians  and  the  life  of  the  streets,  now  he  began  to  follow 
the  counsel  of  his  friend,  and  preach  the  Word. 

His  first  series  of  sermons  on  characters  of  the  Bible  was 
preached  during  the  summer  before  the  Chicago  fire,  and  at  once 
attracted  great  attention.  He  also  began  to  compare  Scripture 
with  Scripture.  "  If  I  don't  understand  a  text,"  said  his  friend 
Moorehouse,  "  I  ask  another  text  to  explain  it,  and  then,  if  it  is  too 
hard  for  me,  I  take  it  to  the  Lord  and  ask  Him  to  explain  it  for  me." 
This  method  Mr.  Moody  adopted,  and  this  was  one  of  the  secrets 
of  his  power.  He  was  mighty  in  the  Scriptures,  and  spoke  as  with 
authority  from  God. 


HIS  BIBLE  285 

He  had  a  large  library  at  his  house  at  Northfield,  much  of 
which  had  been  presented  to  him  by  admiring  friends  ;  but  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  there  are  not  half  a  dozen  books  in  the  world,  besides  the 
books  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  of  which  he  could  give  the 
names  and  a  general  outline  of  their  contents  ;  hence  there  was 
room  in  his  head  for  God's  Word,  and  with  it  he  kept  himself  con- 
tinually full  and  running  over.  His  method  of  Bible  study  was  like 
the  method  of  a  humming  bird  studying  a  clover  blossom.  From 
the  cells  of  sweetness  down  into  which  he  thrust  his  questions  and 
his  prayers,  he  brought  up  the  honey  which  God  has  stored  away  ; 
he  reveled  in  the  profusion  and  preciousness  of  the  promises,  like  a 
robin  in  a  tree  full  of  ripe  cherries.  It  was  enjoyable  just  to  see 
how  heartily  he  enjoyed  the  Word  of  God,  and  almost  convincing  to 
see  with  what  absolute  faith  he  clung  to  it  for  his  own  salvation,  and 
with  what  absolute  assurance  he  urged  others  to  do  the  same.  To  Mr. 
Moody  the  Word  of  God  was  food,  drink,  lodging,  and  clothes ;  he 
climbed  by  it  toward  Heaven,  as  a  sailor  climbs  the  rigging ;  it  was  an 
anchor  to  hold  him  ;  a  gale  to  drive  him  ;  it  was  health,  hope,  happi- 
ness, eternal  life. 

Comments  on   Hope  and  Faith 

It  was  by  his  loving,  prayerful,  trustful  study  of  the  Scrip- 
tures that  he  had  acquired  his  skill  as  a  practical  commentator. 
Take,  as  a  specimen  of  his  off-hand  comments,  this  from  one  of 
the  Bible  readings  on  Hope  :  "  Hope  is  the  anchor  of  the  soul.  Now 
none  of  you  ever  saw  an  anchor  but  was  used  to  hold  something 
down.  It  goes  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and  takes  hold  of 
the  ground,  and  holds  the  ship  to  it.  But  this  anchor,  this  hope, 
is  to  hold  us  up :  it  enters  within  the  veil ;  it  takes  hold  of  the 
throne  of  God." 

On  the  text,  "  Faith  cometh  by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the 
Word    of   God,"  he    said  :   "  A  great   many  people   are   mourning 


286  ms  BIBLE 

their  want  of  faith  ;  but  there  is  no  wonder  that  they  haven't 
any  faith ;  they  don't  study  the  Word  of  God  How  do  you 
suppose  you  are  to  have  faith  in  God  when  you  don't  know  any- 
thing about  Him  ?  It  is  those  who  haven't  any  acquaintance  with 
God  that  stumble  and  fall ;  but  those  who  know  Him  can  trust  Him 
and  lean  heavy  on  His  arm.  If  a  man  would  rather  read  the  Sunday 
newspapers  than  read  God's  Word,  I  don't  see  how  Christ  is  going 
to  save  him.  There  is  no  room  in  him  for  the  Gospel  when  he  has 
filled  himself  with  the  newspapers.  For  years  I  have  not  touched 
a  Sunday  newspaper,  or  a  weekly  religious  paper  either,  on  Sun- 
day. Some  people  lay  aside  those  religious  papers  for  Sunday 
reading,  but  that  is  not  a  good  way.  Let  us  lay  aside  all  other 
reading  for  one  day  in  the  week,  and  devote  ourselves  to  the  study 
of  God's  Word.  But  you  say,  '  O,  we  must  study  science  and 
literature,  and  such  things,  in  order  to  understand  the  Bible.'  What 
can  a  botanist  tell  you  about  the  '  Rose  of  Sharon '  and  the  '  Lily 
of  the  Valley  '  ?  What  can  the  geologist  tell  you  about  the  '  Rock 
of  Ages  '  ?     What  can  the  astronomer  tell  you   about  the   '  Bright 

and  Morning  Star  '  ? 

Get  Rid  of  Doubts 

"  A  good  many  people  are  asking,  '  Will  this  work  hold  out  ?' 
Now  I  am  not  a  prophet,  nor  the  son  of  a  prophet,  but  there  is 
one  thing  I  can  predict,  and  that  is,  that  every  one  of  these 
young  converts  who  studies  his  Bible  till  he  learns  to  love  it  better 
than  anything  else,  will  be  sure  to  hold  out  ;  the  world  will  have  no 
charms  for  him.  What  all  these  young  converts  want  is  to  be  in 
love  with  the  Word  of  God  ;  to  feed  upon  it  till  it  comes  to  be 
sweeter  than  honey  and  the  honeycomb. 

"One  day  when  my  old  employer,  C.  N.  Henderson,  was  send- 
ing me  out  to  make  some  collections,  he  gave  me  some  notes  on 
which  he  had  made  some  private  marks.     Some  were  marked  '  B'. 


mS  BIBLE  287 

bad,  and  I  was  to  get  anything  I  could  for  them.  Others  were 
marked  '  D  ',  doubtful ;  I  was  to  get  all  the  security  I  could.  And 
others  were  marked  '  G  ',  good,  and  these  I  was  to  treat  accordingly. 
Now  people  take  God's  notes  or  promises,  and  some  of  them  they 
mark  '  B  ',  because  they  don't  believe  in  them;  others  they  mark  *  D  ', 
because  they  don't  feel  sure  of  them  ;  but  if  there  happens  to  be 
one  which  has  been  fulfilled  to  themselves,  that  one  they  mark  *  G  '. 

"  Now  that  isn't  the  way  to  treat  God's  promises.  You  ought 
to  mark  every  one  of  them  G-O-O-D,  good.  Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away  before  any  one  of  them  shall  fail.  If  we  could  only 
get  these  Christians  out  of  Doubting  Castle,  how  rich  they  would 
be,  and  what  a  work  of  grace  there  might  be.  O,  these  Devils, 
Ifs  !     When  shall  we  ever  oret  rid  of  them  ?" 

Mr.  Moody's  Bible  was  a  real  storehouse  of  treasure.  Every 
page  of  it  was  marked — almost  every  verse  had  some  special  illus- 
tration connected  with  it,  so  that  he  had  only  to  open  the  book  to 
have  a  perfect  flood  of  light  upon  its  pages.  It  was  for  this  reason 
that  he  was  always  helpful  and  always  interesting. 

The  following  is  one  of  his  most  characteristic  statements, 
and  really  was  the  beginning  of  my  marking  my  own  Bible.  He 
always  practiced  what  he  preached,  and  he  advised  other  people  to 
mark  their  Bibles  because  it  had  been  such  a  blessine  to  him  : 

"  When  the  preacher  gives  out  a  text,  mark  it ;  as  he  goes  on 
preaching,  put  a  few  words  in  the  margin,  key-words  that  shall 
bring  back  the  whole  sermon  again.  By  that  plan  of  making  a  few 
marginal  notes,  I  can  remember  sermons  I  heard  years  and  years 
ago.  Every  man  ought  to  take  down  some  of  the  preacher's  words 
and  ideas,  and  go  into  some  lane  or  byway,  and  preach  them  again 
to  others.  We  ought  to  have  four  ears — two  for  ourselves  and 
two  for  other  people.  Then,  if  you  are  in  a  new  town,  and  have 
nothing  else  to  say,  jump  up  and  say  :  '  I  heard  some  one  say  so 

16 


288  HIS  BIBLE 

and  so  ; '  and  men  will  always  be  glad  to  hear  you  if  you  give  them 
heavenly  food.     The  world  is  perishing  for  lack  of  it." 

He  had  many  references  to  the  twenty-third  Psalm  ;  this  is 
one  of  the  best.  "  I  suppose  I  have  heard  as  many  good  sermons 
on  the  twenty-third  Psalm  as  on  any  other  six  verses  in  the  Bible. 
I  wish  I  had  begun  to  take  notes  upon  them  years  ago  when  I  heard 
the  first  one.  Things  slip  away  from  you  when  you  get  to  be 
fifty  years  of  age. 

"  With  me,  the  Lord. 

*'  Beneath  me,  green  pastures. 

"  Beside  me,  still  waters. 

"  Before  me,  a  table. 

"  Around  me,  mine  enemies. 

"  After  me,  goodness  and  mercy. 

"  Ahead  of  me,  the  house  of  the  Lord. 

"  '  Blessed  is  the  day,'  says  an  old  divine,  'when  Psalm  twenty- 
three  was  born  !'  It  has  been  more  used  than  almost  any  other 
passage  in  the  Bible.'  " 

Mr.  Moody  was  never  more  interesting,  than  when  giving  his 
Bible  readings.  He  could  hold  his  great  audiences  spellbound  with 
his  plain,  practical,  and  yet  powerful  interpretations  of  the  Scrip- 
ture. He  had  no  use  at  all  for  the  so-called  higher  criticism.  At 
one  of  the  last  conferences  held  in  New  York,  he  said  to  a  company 
of  ministers  : 

"I  don't  see  why  you  men  are  talking  about  '  two  Isaiah's  ; 
half  the  people  in  the  country  do  not  know  that  there  is  one 
'Isaiah  yet ;  let's  make  them  know  about  one,  before  we  begin  to 
tell  them  about  two." 

The  last  conversation  of  any  length,  that  I  had  with  him,  he 
must  have  talked  for  half  an  hour,  concerning  his  absolute  confi- 
dence in  the  Bible  and  his  growing  love  for  it. 


M' 


CHAPTER   XXI. 

His  Co"Workers 

R.  MOODY  was  a  great  general  not  only  in  faculties  of 
organization,  but  also  in  his  shrewd  choice  of  the  right  men 
for  the  right  work.  Thus,  from  the  beginning  of  his  labors, 
he  associated  with  himself  the  most  competent  assistants,  and  it  is 
by  no  means  depreciatory  of  his  own  efforts  to  say  that  his  success 
was  in  no  small  measure  dependent  upon  those  who  helped  him. 
It  is  not  depreciatory,  I  say;  for  one  of  the  greatest  gifts  is  this 
ability  to  choose  worthy  helpers.  Napoleon  could  not  conduct  in 
person  all  his  campaigns,  but  he  surrounded  himself  with  a  staff  of 
generals  so  brilliant  in  their  abilities  that  they  were  able  to  help 
him  maintain  his  prestige  for  fifteen  years. 

Ira  David  Sankey. 

In  speaking  of  Mr.  Moody's  co-workers,  I  realize  that  space  is 
obliging  me  to  leave  out  the  names  of  many  who  are  worthy  of 
mention,  so  I  have  endeavored  to  confine  my  choice  to  those  whose 
names  are  most  prominently  associated  with  his  work  in  the  ears  of 
the  public.  One  name  is  indissolubly  connected  with  Mr.  Moody's, 
and  of  its  bearer  I  would  speak  first. 

Ira  David  Sankey  was  born  August  28,  1840,  in  the  village  of 
Edinburgh,  in  western  Pennsylvania.  His  parents  were  Methodists. 
His  father  was  well-off  in  worldly  circumstances,  and  in  such  good 
repute  among  his  neighbors  that  they  repeatedly  elected  him  mem- 
ber of  the  State  Legislature  ;  he  was,  moreover,  a  licensed  exhorter 
in  his  own  church. 

(289) 


290  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

From  childhood  Ira  was  known  for  a  joyous  spirit  and  trustful 
disposition.  The  gift  of  singing  developed  in  him  at  a  very  early 
age.  Reared  in  a  genial,  religious  atmosphere,  liked  and  respected 
by  all  who  knew  him,  he  lived  on,  till  past  his  fifteenth  year,  before 
he  was  converted.  His  conviction  occurred  during  a  series  of 
special  services,  and  after  a  week's  hard  struggle  he  found  peace  in 
accepting  Jesus  as  his  Saviour.  Soon  afterward  he  joined  the  church, 
and,  about  the  same  time,  his  father  having  removed  to  Newcastle, 
he  entered  the  Academy  at  that  place.  The  young  man  had  de- 
veloped from  his  gift  of  song  a  rich  talent  of  expression,  through 
his  wonderful  voice,  of  the  hymns  of  the  church.  After  his  con- 
version it  became  his  delight  to  devote  this  precious  gift  to  the  ser- 
vice of  the  Lord,  and  it  was  his  continual  prayer  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
would  make  use  of  the  words  sung  to  the  conversion  of  those  who 
flocked  to  the  services.  Before  he  attained  his  majority,  he  was  ap- 
pointed superintendent  of  the  Sunday  school,  which  contained  more 
than  300  pupils.  His  singing  of  Gospel  invitations  in  solos  dates 
from  this  time.  The  faith  of  the  singer  was  rewarded  with 
repeated  blessings.  A  class  of  seventy  Christians  was  committed 
to  his  charge,  a  responsibility  which  made  him  a  more  earnest 
student  of  the  Bible  The  choir  of  the  congregation  also  came 
under  his  leadership. 

Elsewhere  in  this  book  is  described  the  meeting  between  Mr. 

Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  and  their  subsequent  labors  together.      It 

is  sufficient  to  add  concerning  Mr.  Sankey  that  his  gift  is  still  used  in 

the  service  of  his  Master. 

Paul  P.   Bliss 

There  are  many  who  still  remember  the  shock  to  Christian 
workers  throughout  the  country  when  on  the  night  of  December 
29,  1876,  Mr.  Paul  P.  Bliss  and  his  wife  perished  in  the  terrible 
railroad  accident  at  Ashtabula,  Ohio.     They  had   been    spending 


S.C 


t'Ar' 


o  • 


'or 


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.tiiitjlgilll^llllli^i^ 


HIS  CO-WORKERS  293 

the  Christmas  holidays  in  Pennsylvania,  and,  leaving  their  little 
ones  at  the  house  of  a  relative  in  Avon,  N.  Y.,  set  out  for  Chicago 
to  help  Major  Whittle  in  the  revival  work  which  was  following  the 
great  meetings  of  Mr.  Moody  in  that  city.  After  they  started  on 
their  journey,  Mr.  Bliss  telegraphed  to  Major  Whittle,  "  We  are 
going  home  to-morrow."  They  did  go  home — to  their  home 
above. 

P.  P.  Bliss,  like  his  associate  in  Gospel  songs,  Mr.  Sankey, 
was  a  native  of  Pennsylvania.  In  early  life  he  had  few  opportunities 
for  culture,  but,  through  a  noble  nature,  God  helped  him  to  a  place 
of  great  usefulness.  He  was  married  young,  and  through  the 
influence  of  his  wife,  who  was  possessed  of  deep  religious  principles, 
was  converted  and  led  to  consecrate  his  g-ifts  to  the  service  of  his 
Master.  Moving  to  Chicago,  he  united  with  the  First  Congrega- 
tional Church,  where,  for  many  years,  he  was  leader  of  the  choir  and 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school,  also  becoming  widely  known 
by  his  work  in  musical  conventions.  His  voice  was  a  rich  baritone. 
As  a  composer  he  will  long  be  remembered  ;  he  was  the  author  of 
many  of  the  best  known  Gospel  songs,  such  as,  "  Hold  the  Fort," 
"What  Shall  the  Harvest  Be,"  "More  to  Follow,"  "Only  an 
Armor  Bearer,"  "  Let  the   Lower   Lights  be   Burning,"  "  Pull  for 

the  Shore,"  etc. 

Major  D.  W.  Whittle 

When  Major  Whittle  entered  upon  revival  work  Mr.  Bliss 
decided  to  give  up  business  and  accompany  him.  During  the 
years  1874-6,  they  traveled  together  through  the  West  and  South. 
Mr.  Bliss  devoted  his  share  of  the  royalty  from  the  Gospel  Songs, 
a  sum  amounting  to  more  than  $60,000,  to  charity  ;  this  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that  he  had  no  private  fortune.  During  the  last  three 
months  of  his  life,  in  connection  with  Major  Whittle,  he  held 
revival  services  at  Kalamazoo,  Mich.,  and  afterward  at  Peoria,  111. 


294  ^^S  CO-WORKERS 

The  voice  of  this  sweet  singer  still  lives  in  his  songs,  for  those  who 
heard  him  will  never  forget  the  pleading,  tender,  sympathetic  quality 
of  his  voice.  No  singer  in  the  history  of  evangelistic  work  has 
made  a  deeper  impression  on  the  Christian  world. 

Major  D.  W.  Whittle  was  for  many  years  a  well-known  business 
man  of  Chicago.  His  prospects  were  large,  and  he  had  won  a  wide 
reputation  for  integrity  and  ability,  when  he  gave  up  everything 
that  might  be  counted  of  worldly  advantage  to  enter  upon  evangel- 
istic work.  He  was  known,  in  earlier  years,  in  his  connection  with 
Mr.  Bliss.  His  career  during  the  past  few  years  is  well  known  to 
the  public  ;  for  a  long  time  he  has  been  one  of  Mr.  Moody's  valued 
helpers,  and  the  tie  between  the  two  men  was  cemented  the  more 
closely  by  the  marriage  of  Major  Whittle's  daughter,  Mary,  to  Mr. 
Moody's  son,  Mr.  Will  R.  Moody. 

Major  Whittle  is  especially  at  home  in  the  inquiry  room. 
The  exercise  of  marvelous  tact,  and  the  use  of  excellent  judgment, 
make  his  personal  instruction  clear  as  well  as  convincing,  and  his 
sympathy  and  love  for  those  whom  he  tries  to  serve  are  unmistak- 
able. Of  special  value  were  his  services  during  the  recent  war 
with  Spain.  He  toiled  when  he  was  too  weary  to  preach,  but 
always  with  that  zeal  which  has  so  commended  him  to  churches 
everywhere.  I  do  not  think  I  have  ever  known  a  more  godly  man. 
I  never  think  of  him  without  blessing. 

Henry   Varley. 

Mr.  Varley  was  born  in  Lincolnshire,  England,  in  1835.  In 
boyhood  his  health  was  poor,  and  he  came  especially  under  the 
influence  of  his  mother,  who,  although  she  died  when  he  was  only 
ten,  gave  him  from  her  own  strong  nature  and  training  the  founda- 
tions of  good  character. 


HIS  CO-WORKERS  295 

It  was  not  long  after  that  he  began  to  Hve  in  London,  barren 
of  worldly  possessions  and  condemned  to  very  many  trying 
experiences.  At  fifteen  he  was  converted,  and  scarcely  a  year  later 
made  his  own  first  public  address  in  the  large  Sunday  school  of  the 
John  Street  Church,  with  which  he  had  united.  From  this  time 
various  services  yielded  occasion  for  the  development  the  gifts 
which  the  Lord  had  placed  with  His  young  servant. 

He  was  only  nineteen  when  he  secured  a  business  partnership, 
but  in  1854  he  went  to  Australia  to  the  gold  fields.  There  he 
would  preach  on  Sundays,  and  about  the  glowing  fires  in  the  even- 
ings would  lead  his  rough  comrades  to  approach  their  Father's 
throne  in  prayer.  He  did  not  succeed  as  a  miner,  and  soon 
returned  to  Melbourne.  In  spite  of  flattering  business  offers  he 
went  back  to  London,  where,  in  1857,  he  married  a  daughter  of  his 
friend  and  former  employer.  Mr.  Varley  then  purchased  a  large  busi- 
ness at  the  West  End  of  London,  where  for  many  years  he  resided. 
His  position  as  preacher  to  a  regular  congregation  began  in  1859, 
and  the  spirit  of  revival  soon  appeared  in  his  meetings. 

The  Free  Tabernacle  Opened 

In  1862  was  opened  the  Free  Tabernacle,  Notting  Hill,  to  the 
erection  of  which  Mr.  Varley  had  consecrated  the  first  ^1,000  he  ever 
made  in  business.  In  a  short  time  600  or  700  believers  were  gathered 
into  the  fellowship  of  this  church.  For  twenty  years  Mr.  Varley 
was  the  pastor  of  this  people.  The  building  was  enlarged  later  to 
make  room  for  hundreds  who  had  been  clamoring  unsuccessfully 
for  admission.  It  is  now  known  as  the  West  London  Tabernacle. 
In  1868  Mr.  Varley  disposed  of  his  large  business  and  gave  him- 
self up  entirely  to  religious  work.  From  that  time  his  revival 
efforts  throughout  the  world  are  common  knowledge.  His  work 
in  Melbourne,  Australia,  in  1877,  will  never  be  forgotten,  and  his 


296  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

services  in  New  York  filled  the  great  Hippodrome  in  Madison  Square. 
In  1883  he  resigned  his  pastorate  in  order  to  devote  his  whole 
strength  to  evangelistic  work. 

It  was  Mr.  Varley,  who  suggested  to  Mr.  Moody,  that  God 
was  waiting  to  find  a  man  through  whom  He  might  speak  to  the 
world.  On  the  day  when  Mr.  Moody  receives  his  reward,  Henry 
Varley  will  have  no  small  share  in  it. 

John  McNeill 

Visitors  to  the  great  Vv^orld's  Fair  at  Chicago  will  never  forget 
the  great  midday  meetings  conducted  in  Central  Music  Hall  by  the 
Rev.  John  McNeill.  He  is  a  Scotchman  of  the  true  type,  as  one 
writer  says,  with  a  converted  soul,  a  granite  mind,  and  a  great  big 
loving  heart.  Essentially,  he  is  a  man  of  the  people  and  has  no 
use  for  ecclesiastical  formalism.  In  his  introduction  to  one  of  the 
volumes  of  Mr.  McNeill's  sermons,  the  Rev.  Dr.  A.  T.  Pierson 
says  ;  ''  Some  men,  like  their  Master,  cannot  be  tied  ;  John  McNeill 
is  one  of  them.  He  needs  no  introduction.  On  both  sides  of  the 
sea  he  has  won  men  as  any  man  will  win  them  who  thinks  and 
speaks  in  dead  earnest.  There  is  a  great  difference  between  having 
to  say  something  and  having  something  to  say.  He  has  shown  that 
he  has  much  that  is  worth  saying,  and  therefore  much  that  is  worth 
hearing.  Those  who  read  his  sermons  will  not  need  to  be  told  that 
the  man  who  followed  Dr.  Dikes  at  Regent  Square,  is  a  free,  fresh, 
truthful,  helpful  preacher." 

It  was  found  in  Chicago  that  some  people  were  forgetting  the 
World's  Fair  in  their  great  desire  to  hear  John  McNeill  speak  at 
Central  Music  Hall.  He  is  considered  by  many  to  be  the  greatest 
preacher  that  has  ever  come  to  our  shores  from  abroad.  He  is  a 
delightful  man  socially,  and  wins  all  to  him,  as  they  hear  him  tal.V. 
in  his  own  inimitable  way. 


HIS  CO-WORKERS  297 

Daniel  B.  Towner  was  born  in  Rome,  Bradford  County,  Penn- 
sylvania, March  5,  1850.  As  a  boy  he  began  the  study  of  music  with 
his  father,  who  was  a  teacher  of  music,  and  at  nineteen  he  began  to 
teach  singing  classes.  From  1873  to  1875  most  of  his  time  was 
devoted  to  conducting  musical  conventions  and  institutes.  In  this 
work  he  was  eminently  succesful.  In  Cincinnati,  in  1885,  Mr. 
Moody  held  a  series  of  meetings.  Mr.  Towner  was  assisting  in 
the  music,  and  the  evangelist  saw  in  him  a  man  whose  services 
would  be  invaluable.  From  that  time  Mr.  Towner  was  associated 
with  the  work  of  Mr.  Moody.  He  has  a  baritone  voice  of  wonder- 
ful power  and  compass,  and  his  heart  is  in  the  work.  As  a  com- 
poser of  Gospel  music  he  ranks  among  the  best.  Mr.  Towner  is  a 
most  accomplished  musician,  and  his  voice  has  a  sweetness  about  it 
that  is  never  lost,  even  under  the  stress  of  continuous  and  exacting 

service. 

George  C.  Stebbins 

Another  singer  who  is  known  wherever  the  Gospel  message  is 
carried  by  song  is  Mr.  George  C.  Stebbins.  He  is  a  native  of  New 
York  State,  and  was  born  February  26,  1846,  of  Christian  parents, 
the  hallowed  influence  of  whose  lives  is  in  his  work  to-day.  At 
twenty  he  took  charge  of  a  choir,  and  also  taught  singing  school  for 
several  years.  At  twenty-three  he  was  converted.  In  1869  he 
moved  to  Chicago  and  was  soon  employed  by  the  First  Baptist 
Church  to  lead  the  choir.  During  this  time  he  met  Mr.  Moody, 
and  often  sang  with  Mr.  Sankey  and  Mr.  Bliss,  who  were  his  per- 
sonal friends.  Going  to  Boston  for  the  further  culture  of  his  voice, 
he  was  employed  in  Dr.  Gordon's  Church,  the  Clarendon  Street 
Chapel,  where  he  remained  one  year,  when  he  went  to  Tremont 
Temple  as  director  of  music.  Becoming  more  deeply  interested  in 
the  evangelistic  work,  he  joined  the  rank  of  singing  evangelists, 
.and  on  the  death  of  Mr.  Bliss  was  called  upon  to  aid  Major  Whittle 


298  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

in  Chicago.  For  a  long  time  he  was  associated  with  Dr.  George 
F.  Pentecost.  He  accompanied  Mr.  Moody  to  CaHfornia,  and  was 
with  him  in  1892  in  closing  his  work  in  Great  Britain.  Mr.  Steb- 
bins  wrote  many  of  the  best  known  songs  in  the  Gospel  Hymns, 
among  others,  "  Saviour,  Breathe  an  Evening  Blessing,"  "  Must  I 
Go  and  Empty  Handed,"  "The  Home-land,"  etc.  But  I  doubt 
not  he  will  be  longest  known  as  the  author  of  "  Saved  by  Grace." 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stebbins  sing  together  beautifully,  and  of  all  my  own 
assistants  none  have  been  more  helpful  than  these  sweet  singers. 

Ferdinand  Schiverea. 

As  a  younger  man  Ferdinand  Schiverea  was  an  actor,  but  he 
was  led  providentially  to  attend  a  meeting  which  Mr.  Moody  was 
conducting  in  Brooklyn.  There  the  Spirit  of  God  took  hold  of 
him  mightily.  For  days  he  had  no  rest,  but  finally  the  light  came. 
He  went  at  once  to  his  mother  with  the  news  and  she  said,  "  I  have 
asked  God  for  this,  dear  child ;  I  have  given  you  to  God, 
and  He  has  just  done  what  He  said  He  would,  if  I  only 
would  believe."  The  first  effort  of  Mr.  Schiverea  was  to  lead  his 
brothers  to  Christ.  He  then  reached  out  for  the  neighbors,  and 
every  night  for  months  held  services  of  prayer  in  a  small  rear  room 
in  his  poor  home.  During  all  this  time,  and  for  four  years,  he 
worked  in  a  large  furniture  house,  packing  goods  for  shipment. 
The  first  work  that  God  especially  blessed  him  in  was  in  Brooklyn, 
where  for  twelve  months  he  held  meetings  nearly  every  night.  He 
has  labored  in  the  principal  cities  and  towns  of  the  United  States, 
as  well  as  in  most  of  the  important  cities  and  towns  in  Canada.  In 
Toronto  alone  he  held  twenty  different  series  of  meetings.  Mr. 
Schiverea  is  particularly  strong  in  his  ability  to  reach  the  masses ; 
he  is  now  in  the  very  midst  of  his  useful  life,  and  his  "  love  abides 
in  strength."     There  is  a  future  of  increasinp^  usefulness  before  him. 


HIS  CO-WORKERS  299 

He  was  a  particular  favorite  with  Mr.  Moody,  who  never  lost 
an  opportunity  to  say  a  kind  word  about  his  work. 

H.   M.   Wharton. 

Of  the  men  who  stood  very  close  to  Mr.  Moody,  none 
was  more  highly  esteemed  by  him,  than  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.  They  came  together  first  in  a  southern  city  where 
good  words  concerning  Dr.  Wharton  had  been  spoken  to  Mr. 
Moody  by  the  people  of  the  city,  and  he  did  with  him  what  he 
frequently  did  with  many  others — called  him  out  of  the  audience 
and  insisted  that  he  should  preach,  and  then  announced  that 
he  would  conduct  subsequent  services,  I  first  saw  these  two 
men  of  God  together  in  the  days  of  the  World's  Fair,  when  Dr. 
Wharton  always  sat  on  Mr.  Moody's  right.  He  is  an  inimitable 
story-teller,  and  Mr.  Moody's  sides  would  shake  and  the  tears  run 
down  his  face  as  Dr.  Wharton  would  tell  some  of  his  southern 
experiences,  or  recall  some  of  the  events  of  his  boyhood  days.  As, 
for  example,  when  he  told  one  morning,  which  happened  to  be  his 
birthday,  of  his  great  delight  in  the  workmen  that  were  digging 
some  ditches  near  his  boyhood's  home.  A  large  number  of  Irish- 
men v/cre  in  the  company,  and  young  Wharton  had  been  punished 
for  staying  too  long  in  their  presence.  He  had  been  designed  by 
his  family  to  preach,  and  after  the  punishment  he  declared  that  he 
would  not  be  a  minister,  but  surely  intended  to  be  an  Irishman.  I 
can  see  Mr.  Moody  laugh  now,  as  the  story  was  told.  Dr.  Wharton 
is  a  magnificent  preacher,  and  one  of  the  best  evangelists  in  the 
country.  He  has  made  himself  poor  in  taking  care  of  orphan 
children  both  at  Luray  and  in  other  places,  and  the  blessing  of  God 
will  surely  ever  abide  upon  him.  Mr.  Moody  considered  him  one 
of  the  most  skilful  workers  in  the  after-meetings  he  had  ever  come 


300  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

in  contact  with,  and  to  his  ability  in  this  direction  I  bear  hearty 
testimony. 

R.    A.    TORREY 

Mr.  Torrey  was  born  January  28,  1856,  in  Hoboken,  N.  J. 
At  fifteen  he  entered  Yale  College,  and  four  years  later  the  Yale 
Theological  Seminary,  whence  he  was  graduated  in  1878.  During 
his  last  year  in  the  Seminary  he  worked  for  six  weeks  in  the  inquiry 
room  in  Mr.  Moody's  meetings  in  New  Haven.  In  1882  he 
resigned  his  charge  and  went  to  Germany  for  a  year  of  study. 
Returning  in  1883,  he  accepted  a  pastorate  in  Minneapolis,  becoming 
later  the  superintendent  of  the  City  Missionary  Society  in  that 
city,  and  after  a  time  founded  an  independent  people's  church. 
Several  years  later  he  accepted  the  invitation  to  become  superin- 
tendent of  Mr.  Moody's  Bible  Institute,  entering  on  the  charge 
in  1889.  Most  of  the  phenomenal  success  of  the  Institute  is  due 
to  his  wise  administration.  He  was  very  close  to  Mr.  Moody 
during  the  later  years.  No  man,  really,  had  Mr.  Moody's  confidence 
more  completely,  and  justly  so,  for  no  man  could  ever  be  more 
loyal  to  another  than  R.  A.  Torrey  to  D.  L.  Moody. 

A.  C.   Dixon. 

Dr.  Dixon  is  a  typical  southerner,  fiery,  intense,  dramatic,  elo- 
quent. His  father  was  a  frontier  preacher,  and  the  son  was  con- 
verted and  joined  his  father's  church  when  eleven  years  old.  At 
fifteen  he  entered  Wake  Forest  College,  and  after  graduation  de- 
cided to  study  law,  but  the  need  of  some  country  churches  in  his 
neighborhood  persuaded  him  .to  accept  the  ministry  of  different 
congregations.  During  nine  months  he  baptized  100  converts. 
After  an  incumbency  of  three  years  in  a  small  church  he  entered 
upon  a  new  charge  in  Asheville,  N.  C,  where,  within  three  months 
of  his  aggressive  ministry,  250  persons  were  converted.    Three-and- 


mS  CO-WORKERS  303 

a-half  years  later  he  was  elected  president  of  the  Wake  Forest 
College,  but  he  declined  the  election,  accepting  instead  the  pastor- 
ate of  a  large  Baptist  church  in  Baltimore.  His  church  began  to 
expand,  and  soon  a  large  tabernacle  had  to  be  erected  to  accommo- 
date the  crowds  who  pressed  forward  to  enjoy  his  ministry.  Later 
he  was  called  to  Brooklyn,  where  he  has  already  won  a  high  position 
as  preacher  and  pastor  of  his  church.  Dr.  Dixon  is  a  man  of  deep 
convictions.  The  Bible  is  to  him  the  book  of  life.  He  is  a  man 
of  prayer,  a  believer  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  tender  and  gentle  in  deal- 
ing with  inquirers,  ever  beseeching  sinners  to  become  reconciled  to 
God.  Mr.  Moody  was  devoted  to  him,  and  had  the  greatest  confi- 
dence in  his  ability. 

Henry    Drummond. 

The  death  of  Henry  Drummond  a  few  years  ago  took  from  the 
world  a  gentle,  ministering  spirit  whose  influences  had  been  turned 
to  Christian  work  by  the  help  of  Mr.  Moody's  meetings  in  Glasgow, 
twenty-six  years  ago.  What  this  one  man,  who  was  led  to  the 
Master  by  Mr.  Moody,  accomplished  in  his  too  brief  period  of  ser- 
vice, it  is  impossible  to  estimate,  but  his  forceful  words,  and  the 
example  of  his  shining  life  have  been  an  inspiration  to  thousands. 
He  was  born  in  185 1,  in  Sterling,  Scotland.  He  was  well  educated, 
and  prepared  himself  for  the  ministry.  His  culture  was  wide 
Science  unlocked  her  doors  to  him  ;  advanced  thought  had  no  terrors 
for  him, — nor  did  these  work  any  insidious  undermining  of  his  faith. 
When  Mr.  Moody  and  Mr.  Sankey  were  conducting  their  great 
mission  in  Scotland,  Henry  Drummond  felt  the  burden  of  their 
message  and  became  an  earnest  assistant  at  the  meetings.  He  was 
one  of  the  band  of  helpers  who  followed  in  Mr.  Moody's  wake,  and 
aided  in  continuing  the  work  which  the  evangelists  had  begun.  In 
later  years  he  traveled  widely,  visiting  the  United  States,  and 
spending  some  time  in  East  Central  Africa.     In  1877  he  became 


304  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

lecturer  on  Natural  Science  in  the  Second  Free  Church  Colleg-e  in 
Glasgow.  He  was  the  author  of  a  number  of  important  books, 
most  of  which  tended  to  disabuse  the  public  mind  of  any  supposed 
conflict  between  science  and  religion.  Acquaintance  with  him  was 
a  great  stimulous  to  his  friends.  Several  times  he  worked  with 
Mr.  Moody,  and  his  opinion  of  the  great  evangelist  was  apparent 
in  the  words  he  uttered  a  few  weeks  before  his  death  in  1897.  He 
said,  "  Moody  was  the  biggest  human  I  ever  met."  And  D. 
L.  Moody  was  heard  to  say  again  and  again  that  he  loved  Henry 
Drummond. 

G.   Campbell  Morgan. 

Mr.  Morgan  was  born  December  9,  1863,  at  Tetbury,  Glouces- 
tershire, England.  He  was  of  nonconformist  ancestry,  his  father 
being  a  Baptist  minister.  The  young  man  was  educated  at  Chel- 
tingham,  and  at  twenty  was  appointed  to  a  mastership  in  the 
Jewish  Collegiate  School  in  Birmingham.  Three  years  later  he 
abandoned  his  profession  of  teaching  to  become  an  evangelist. 
He  went  to  Hull  to  hold  services  for  two  weeks,  but  they  proved 
so  successful  that  they  ran  for  many  months,  and  he  finally  left, 
in  1887,  ori  account  of  ill  health.  He  continued  his  evangelistic 
work,  however,  and  at  last  became  pastor  of  the  Congregational 
Church  in  Stone,  in  1889,  and  in  1891  pastor  of  the  Rugeley  Con- 
gregational Church.  In  1893  he  went  to  Westminster  Road 
Church  at  Birchfield,  a  suburb  of  Birmingham.  It  was  in  1896, 
while  pastor  of  this  church,  that  he  first  went  to  the  United  States, 
and  visited  Northfield.  In  1897  he  became  pastor  of  the  New- 
court  Congregational  Church,  Tollington  Park,  London.  He 
visited  Northfield  in  1897,  1898  and  1899.  Mr.  Moody  had  the 
greatest  delight  in  Mr.  Morgan's  ability.  He  had  him  travel 
through  many  of  our  cities  in   September  and  October  of   1899. 


HIS  CO-WORKERS  305 

The  last  time  I  ever  saw  Mr.  Moody  was  when   he  was  sitting  on 
the  platform  with  Mr.  Morgan. 

George   H.   Macgregor. 

Mr.   Macgregor   was  born    in    Scotland   thirty-six    years    ago. 

His   father   was  a  minister.      The   boy  attended   the  University  of 

Edinburgh   and   New  College   of    Divinity  in   the   same   city,   and 

even  before  he  completed  his  theological  studies  he  was  called  to  a 

church   in   Aberdeen,   in    1888,   gaining    experience  which   proved 

invaluable.      In  1889  he  visited  Keswick,  and  under  the  influences 

of  the  dwellers  on  that  consecrated  ground  came  into  a  closer  walk 

with  God.      In  1891  he  was  invited  to  the  Keswick  platform.      Mr. 

Macgregor  bears  in  his  style  all  the  evidences  of   his  fine  culture, 

a  culture  which,  like  that  of   Henry  Drummond,  is  consecrated  to 

the  Work  of  God.      His  zeal  is  inspiring.      As  a  winner  of  souls  he 

is  not  excelled.      I  do  not  think  any  one  has  ever  visited  Northfield 

who  was  really  more  helpful   to   the   people   than  Mr.  Macgregor. 

He  is  a  most  charming  man,  and  as  thoroughly  consecrated  as  any 

one  I  have  ever  met. 

F.   B.   Meyer. 

Mr.  Meyer  began  his  ministry  twenty-seven  years  ago,  in 
Richmond,  Surrey,  England,  even  before  he  had  completed  his 
studies,  which  he  was  then  carrying  on  at  Regent  Park  College  ; 
but  after  his  orraduation  he  went  as  assistant  to  the  Rev.  C.  M. 
Birrell,  of  Pembroke  Chapel,  Liverpool,  and  later  transferred  his 
interests  to  York,  where,  during  the  meetings  of  Mr.  Moody  and 
Mr.  Sankey,  in  1873,  ^^e  young  minister  was  profoundly  stirred  by 
the  message  of  the  American  Evangelists.  Mr.  Meyer  is  best 
known,  aside  from  his  spiritual  literature,  as  pastor  of  Christ 
Church,  West  London.  This  great  institutional  house  of  God  was 
completed  twenty-two  years  ago  to  perpetuate  the  Surrey  Chapel 


3o6  HIS  CO-WORKERS 

work  of  Rowland  Hill.  Mr.  Meyer  followed  Dr.  Newman  Hall  in 
this  pastorate.  Dr.  Hall  was  the  successor  of  James  Sherman, 
who,  in  his  turn,  succeeded  Mr.  Hill.  It  is  doubtful  if  any  other 
church  in  the  world  employs  so  wide  a  range  of  activities  as  Christ 
Church,  London. 

Mr.  Meyer's  name  is  known  wherever  the  English  language  is 
spoken,  and  Bible  students  everywhere  are  devoted  to  him,  for  his 
own  as  well  as  his  work's  sake. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

Three  Characteristic  Sermons 

F  one  has  known  Mr.  Moody  for  any  great  length  of  time,  there 
are  three  sermons  which  doubtless  would  come  before  his  mind 
as  being  more  intimately  associated  with  the  great  evangelist 

than  any  other  sermons  he  has  preached. 

The  first  has  to  do  with  the  love  of  God. 

The  second,  with  the  excuses  of  men. 

The  third,  with  his  special  appeal  made  to  men  in  every  part 

of  the  English  speaking  world  on  "  Sowing  and  Reaping." 

Characteristics  of  the  Three  Sermons 
The  first  sermon  is  remarkable  because  for  a  lonsf  time  Mr. 
Moody  felt  called  to  preach  the  law,  and  was  constantly  crying 
out,  after  the  manner  of  an  Old  Testament  prophet,  against  sin, 
but  under  the  influence  of  Harry  Moorehouse,  as  suggested  in 
another  part  of  this  volume,  he  seemed  to  come  out  from  under 
the  power  of  law  into  the  power  of  grace,  and  his  preaching 
was  altogether  different. 

His  sermon  on  the  excuses  is  very  characteristic  of  him,  and 
one  has  but  to  shut  his  eyes  as  he  reads,  to  see  the  greatest  evan- 
gelist of  the  generation  pleading  with  men,  as  he  alone  could 
do, — now  moving  his  audience  to  tears,  and  then  almost  instantly 
having  them  convulsed  with  laughter,  but  as  a  result  of  it  all,  lead- 
ing multitudes  to  Christ. 

The  third  sermon  is  one  which  a  host  of  men  throughout  the 
world  will  ever  remember.      It  was  the  first  sermon  I  ever  heard 

17 

307 


3o8  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

him  preach.  Under  the  power  of  it,  I  saw  my  own  heart  as  never 
before,  and  under  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  as  manifested  in 
the  preacher's  sermon,  I  began  to  feel  the  power  of  Christ  to  make 
me  clean. 

The  sermons  follow  in  the  order  mentioned : 

GOD'S  LOVE 

I  have  often  thought  I  would  like  to  have  but  one  text;  and 
if  I  thought  I  could  only  make  the  world  believe  that  God  is  love, 
I  would  only  take  that  text  and  go  up  and  down  the  earth  trying 
to  counteract  what  Satan  has  been  telling  them — that  God  is  not 
love.  He  has  made  the  world  believe  it  effectually.  It  would 
not  take  twenty-four  hours  to  make  the  world  come  to  God,  if  you 
can  only  make  them  believe  God  is  love.  If  you  can  really  make 
a  man  believe  you  love  him,  you  have  won  him  ;  and  if  I  could 
only  make  people  really  believe  that  God  loves  them,  what  a  rush 
we  would  see  for  the  Kingdom  of  God  !  Oh,  how  they  would 
rush  in  !  But  man  has  got  a  false  idea  about  God,  and  he  will 
not  believe  that  He  is  a  God  of  love.  It  is  because  he  don't 
know  Him. 

Now,  in  Paul's  farewell  letter  to  the  Corinthians,  in  the  13th 
chapter,  2d  Corinthians,  he  says  :  "  Finally,  brethren,  farewell.  Be 
perfect.  Be  of  good  comfort.  Be  of  one  mind.  Live  in  peace, 
and  the  God  of  love" — he  calls  Him  the  God  of  love — "and 
peace  shall  be  with  you."  Then  John,  who  was  better  acquainted 
with  Christ,  telling  us  about  the  love  God  has  for  this  perishing 
world,  writes  in  this  epistle,  in  the  evening  of  his  life,  these  words : 
*'  Beloved,  let  us  love  one  another,  for  love  is  of  God,  and  every 
one  that  loveth  is  born  of  God  and  knoweth  God,  and  he  that 
loveth  not  knoweth  no  God,  for  God  is  love."  We  built  a  Church 
in  Chicago  a  number  of  years  ago,  and  we  were  so   anxious  to 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  309 

make  people  believe  that  God  is  love,  that  we  thought  if  we  could 
not  preach  it  into  their  hearts,  we  would  burn  it  in,  and  so  right 
over  the  pulpit  we  had  the  words  put  in  gas  jets,  "  God  is  love," 
and  every  night  we  had  it  there.  A  man  going  along  there  one 
niorht  orlanced  in  throucrh  the  door  and  saw  the  text.  He  was  a 
poor  prodigal,  and  he  passed  on,  and  as  he  walked  away,  he  said  to 
himself,  "  God  is  love  ?  No.  God  is  not  love.  God  does  not  love 
me.  He  does  not  love  me,  for  I  am  a  poor,  miserable  sinner.  If 
God  was  love,  He  would  love  me.  God  is  not  love."  Yet  there 
the  text  was,  burning  down  into  his  soul.  And  he  went  on  a  little 
further,  and  turned  around  and  came  back  and  went  into  the  meet- 
ing. He  didn't  hear  what  the  sermon  was,  but  the  text  got  into 
his  heart,  and  that  is  what  we  want.  It  is  of  very  little  account 
what  men  say,  if  God's  word  only  gets  into  the  heart.  And  he 
stayed  after  meeting  was  over,  and  I  found  him  there  weeping  like 
a  child  ;  but  as  I  unfolded  the  Scripture,  and  told  him  how  God 
had  loved  him  from  his  earliest  childhood  all  alonof,  the  liofht  of  the 
Gospel  broke  into  his  mind,  and  he  went  away  rejoicing.  This 
would  be  the  best  meeting  to-day  we  have  had  yet,  if  wr,  could 
only  make  this  audience  believe  that  God  is  love. 

Now  turn  a  moment  to  the  13th  chapter  of  John's  Gospel,  first 
verse  :  "  Now,  before  the  feast  of  the  Passover,  when  Jesus  knew 
that  His  hour  was  come  that  He  should  depart  out  of  this  world 
unto  the  Father,  havingf  loved  His  own  which  were  in  the  world 
He  loved  them  unto  the  end."  His  love  is  unchangeable.  That 
night  He  knew  very  well  what  was  going  to  happen.  Judas  had 
gone  out  to  betray  Him.  He  knew  it.  He  had  already  left  that 
little  band  to  go  out  and  sell  Christ.  Do  you  tell  me  Christ  did 
not  love  Judas?  That  very  night  He  said  to  him,  "Judas,  what 
thou  doest,  do  quickly  ;"  and  when  Judas,  meeting  Him  in  the 
garden,  kissed   Him,  and   He  said,   "  Betrayest  thou   thy  Maste/' 


3to  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

with  a  kiss  ?"  was  it  not  the  voice  of  love  and  compassion  that 
ought  to  have  broken  Judas'  heart  ?  He  loved  him  in  the  very 
hour  that  he  betrayed  Him  ;  and  that  is  what  is  going  to  make  hell 
so  terrible,  that  you  go  there  with  the  love  of  God  beneath  your 
feet.  It  is  not  that  He  don't  love  you,  but  you  despise  His  love. 
It  is  a  terrible  thing  to  despise  love.  He  loved  them  unto  the  end. 
He  knew  very  well  that  Peter  was  going  to  deny  Him  that  night 
and  curse  and  swear  because  he  was  mistaken  for  Jesus'  companion. 
He  knew  all  His  disciples  would  forsake  Him,  and  leave  Him  to 
suffer  alone,  and  yet  He  says  He  loved  them  unto  the  end.  And 
the  sweetest  words  that  fell  from  the  lips  of  the  Son  of  God  were 
that  night  when  they  were  going  to  leave  Him.  Those  words  that 
fell  from  his  lips  that  night  will  live  forever.  How  they  will  live 
in  the  hearts  of  God's  people  !  We  could  not  get  on  very  well 
without  the  14th  of  John  and  the  15th  and  i6th.  It  was  on  that 
memorable  night  that  He  uttered  those  blessed  words,  and  on  that 
very  night  that  He  told  them  how  much  God  loved  them.  It 
seems  as  if  that  particular  night,  when  He  was  about  to  be  deserted 
by  all,  His  heart  was  bursting  with  love  for  His  flock. 

Just  let  us  look  at  the  i6th  chapter  and  the  27th  verse  and  see 
what  He  says:  "For  the  Father  Himself  loveth  you  because  ye 
have  loved  me  and  have  believed  that  I  came  from  God."  I  don't 
know  but  what  Christ  felt  that  there  miorht  be  some  of  His  dis- 
ciples  that  would  not  love  the  Father  as  they  loved  Him.  I 
remember  for  the  first  few  years  after  I  was  converted  I  had  a 
good  deal  more  love  for  Christ  than  for  God  the  Father,  whom  I 
looked  upon  as  the  stern  Judge,  while  I  regarded  Christ  as  the 
Mediator  who  had  come  between  me  and  that  stern  Judge,  and 
had  appeased  His  wrath,  but  when  I  got  a  little  better  acquainted 
with  my  Bible  those  views  all  fled.  After  I  became  a  father,  and 
woke  up  to  the  realization  of  what  it  cost  God  to  have  His  Son  die, 


^S   "5?5!?: 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  313 

I  began  to  see  that  God  was  to  be  loved  just  as  much  as  His  Son 
was.  Why,  it  took  more  love  for  God  to  give  His  Son  to  die  than 
it  would  to  die  Himself.  You  would  a  thousand  times  sooner  die 
yourself  in  your  son's  place  than  have  him  taken  away.  If  the 
executioner  was  about  to  take  your  son  to  the  gallows,  you  would 
say,  "  Let  me  die  in  his  stead  ,  let  my  son  be  spared."  Oh,  think 
of  the  love  God  must  have  had  for  this  world  that  He  eave  His 
only  begotten  Son  to  die  for  it,  and  that  is  what  I  want  you  to 
understand.  "The  Father  Himself  loveth  you  because  you  have 
loved  Me."  If  a  man  has  loved  Christ,  God  will  set  His  love  upon 
him.  Then  in  the  17th  chapter,  23d  verse,  in  that  wonderful 
prayer  He  made  that  night,  "  I  in  them,  and  Thou  in  Me,  that 
they  may  be  made  perfect  in  one,  and  that  the  world  may  know 
Thou  hast  sent  Me  and  hast  loved  them  as  Thou  hast  loved  Me." 
God  could  look  down  from  Heaven  and  see  His  Son  fulfilling  His 
will,  and  He  said,  "This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased."  But  when  it  is  said,  "  God  loved  us  as  He  loved  His 
own  Son,"  it  used  to  seem  to  me  to  be  downright  blasphemy,  until 
I  found  it  was  in  the  Word  of  God.  That  was  the  wonderful 
prayer  He  made  on  the  night  of  His  betrayal.  Is  there  any  love 
in  the  world  like  that  ?  Is  there  anything  to  be  compared  to  the 
love  of  God?     Well  may  Paul  say,  "  It  passeth  knowledge." 

And  then,  I  can  imagine  some  of  you  saying,  "  Well,  He 
loved  his  disciples  and  He  loves  those  who  serve  Him  faithfully, 
but  then  I  have  been  untrue."  I  may  be  speaking  now  to  some 
backsliders,  but  if  I  am,  I  want  to  say  to  everyone  here  :  "  The 
Lord  loves  you."  Now,  it  says  in  John,  first  chapter  :  "  He  loved 
them  unto  the  end."  That  is.  His  love  was  unchangeable  and  you 
may  have  forgotten  Him  and  betrayed  Him  and  denied  Him,  but 
nevertheless  He  loves  you,  He  loves  the  backslider.  There  is 
not  a  rnan  here  that  has  wandered  from  God  and  betrayed  Him 


314  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

but  what  the  Lord  Jesus  loves  him  and  wants  him  to  come  back. 
Now  in  this  14th  chapter  of  Hosea  He  says,  "  I  will  heal  every 
backslider.  I  will  love  them  freely."  So  the  Lord  tells  the  back- 
sliders, "  If  you  will  only  come  back  to  Me  I  will  forgive  you."  It 
was  thus  with  Peter  who  denied  his  Lord  ;  the  Saviour  forgave  him, 
and  sent  him  to  preach  His  glorious  Gospel  on  the  day  of  Pente- 
cost, when  three  thousand  were  won  to  Christ  under  one  sermon  of 
a  backslider. 

Just  turn  to  the  31st  chapter  of  Jeremiah  and  the  3d  verse. 
"  He  hath  loved  us,"  he  says,  "  v/ith  an  everlasting  love." 

Now  there  is  a  difference  between  human  and  divine  love. 
The  one  is  fleeting,  the  other  is  everlasting.  There  is  no  end  of 
God's  love.  I  can  imagine  some  of  you  saying:  "If  God  has 
loved  us  with  an  everlasting  love,  why  does  it  say  that  God  is  angry 
with  the  sinner  every  day  ? "  Why,  dear  friends,  that  very  word 
"anger"  in  the  Scriptures  is  one  of  the  very  strongest  evidences 
and  expressions  of  God's  love.  Suppose  I  have  got  two  boys,  and 
one  of  them  goes  out  and  lies  and  swears  and  steals  and  gets  drunk  ; 
if  I  have  no  love  for  him  I  don't  care  what  he  does  ;  but  just  because 
I  do  love  him  it  makes  me  angry  to  see  him  take  that  course,  and 
it  is  because  God  loves  the  sinner  that  he  gets  angry  with  him. 
That  very  passage  shows  how  strong  God's  love  is.  Let  me  tell 
.you,  dear  friends,  God  loves  you  in  all  your  backslidings  and  wan- 
derings. You  may  despise  His  love  and  trample  it  under  your  feet 
and  go  down  to  ruin,  but  it  wont  be  because  God  don't  love  you.  I 
once  heard  of  a  father,  who  had  a  prodigal  boy,  and  the  boy  had 
sent  his  mother  down  to  the  grave  with  a  broken  heart,  and  one 
evening  the  boy  started  out  as  usual  to  spend  the  night  in  drinking 
and  gambling,  and  his  old  father  as  he  was  leaving  said,  "  My 
son,  I  want  to  ask  a  favor  of  you  to-night.  You  have  not  spent  an 
evening  with  me  since  your  mother  died,  and  now  I  want  you  to 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  315 

spend  this  night  at  home.  I  have  been  very  lonely  since  your 
mother  died.  Now,  wont  you  gratify  your  old  father  by  staying  at 
home  with  him  ?"  "  No,"  said  the  young  man,  "  it  is  lonely  here, 
and  there  is  nothinof  to  interest  me,  and  I  am  ooine  out."  And 
the  old  man  prayed  and  wept,  and  at  last  he  said,  "  My  boy,  you 
are  just  killing  me,  as  you  have  killed  your  mother.  These  hairs 
are  growing  whiter,  and  you  are  sending  me,  too,  to  the  grave." 
Still  the  boy  would  not  stay,  and  the  old  man  said,  "  If  your  are 
determined  to  go  to  ruin,  you  must  go  over  this  old  body  to-night. 
I  cannot  resist  you.  You  are  stronger  than  I,  but  if  you  go  out 
you  must  go  over  this  body."  And  he  laid  himself  down  before 
the  door,  and  that  son  walked  over  the  form  of  his  father,  trampled 
the  love  of  his  father  under  foot  and  went  out. 

And  that  is  the  way  with  sinners.  You  have  got  to  trample 
the  blood  of  God's  Son  under  your  feet  if  you  go  down  to  death, 
to  make  ligfht  of  the  blood  of  the  innocent,  to  make  li^ht  of  the 
wonderful  love  of  God,  to  despise  it.  But  whether  you  do  or  not. 
He  loves  you  still.  I  can  imagine  some  of  you  saying,  "  Why  does 
He  not  show  His  love  to  us  ?"  Why,  how  can  it  be  any  further 
shown  than  it  is?  You  say  so  because  you  won't  read  His  Word 
and  find  out  how  much  He  loves  you.  If  any  man  will  take  a 
concordance  and  run  through  the  Scriptures  with  the  one  word 
"  love,"  you  will  find  out  hov/  much  He  loves  you  ;  you  will  find  out 
that  it  is  all  one  great  assurance  of  His  love.  He  is  continually 
trying  to  teach  you  this  one  lesson,  and  to  win  you  to  Himself  by 
a  cross  of  love.  All  the  burdens  He  has  placed  upon  the  sons  of 
men  have  been  out  of  pure  love,  to  bring  you  to  Himself.  Those 
who  do  not  believe  that  God  is  love  are  under"  the  power  of  the 
Evil  One.  He  has  blinded  you,  and  you  have  been  deceived  with 
his  lies.  God's  dealing  has  been  all  love,  love,  love,  from  the  fall 
of   Adam   to   the  present   hour.     Adam's  calamity  brought  down 


3i6  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

God's  love.  No  sooner  did  the  news  reach  Heaven  than  God  came 
down  after  Adam  with  His  love.  That  voice  that  rang  through 
Eden  was  the  voice  of  love,  hunting  after  the  fallen  one — "  Adam, 
where  art  thou  ?"  For  all  these  thousand  years  that  voice  of  love 
has  been  sounding  down  the  ages.  Out  of  His  love  He  made  a 
way  of  escape  for  Adam.  God  saved  him  out  of  His  pity  and  love. 
In  the  63d  chapter  of  Isaiah,  and  the  9th  verse,  we  read  :  "  In 
all  their  affliction,  He  was  afflicted,  and  the  angel  of  His  presence 
saved  them.  In  His  love  and  in  His  pity  He  redeemed  them  ;  and 
He  bare  them,  and  carried  them  all  the  days  of  old."  In  all  their 
afflictions  He  was  afllicted  You  cannot  afflict  one  of  God's 
creatures  without  afflicting  Him.  He  takes  the  place  of  a  living 
father.  There  a  man  has  a  sick  child  burning  with  fever.  How 
gladly  the  father  or  the  mother  would  take  that  fever  and  put  it 
into  their  own  bosoms.  The  mother  would  take  from  a  child  its 
loathsome  disease  right  out  of  its  body,  and  put  it  into  her  own — 
such  is  a  mother's  love.  How  she  pities  the  child,  and  how  gladly 
she  would  suffer  in  the  place  of  the  child  !  That  illustration  has 
been  often  used  here — "Asa  mother  pitieth  her  children."  You 
cannot  afflict  any  of  God's  creatures,  but  God  feels  it.  The  Son 
of  His  bosom  came  to  redeem  us  from  the  cares  of  the  world.  I 
do  not  see  how  any  man  with  an  open  Bible  before  him  can  get  up 
and  say  to  me  that  he  does  not  see  how  God  is  love.  "  Greater 
love  hath  no  man  than  this,  that  a  man  will  lay  down  his  life  for 
his  friend."  Christ  laid  down  His  life  on  the  cross,  and  cried  in 
His  agony,  "  Father,  forgive  them,  they  know  not  what  they  do." 
That  was  wonderful  love.  You  and  I  would  have  called  fire  down 
from  Heaven  to  consume  them.  We  would  have  sent  them  all 
down  into  the  hot  pavement  of  hell.  But  the  Son  of  God  lifted 
up  His  cry,  "  Father,  forgive  them,  they  know  not  what  they  do." 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  317 

I  hear  some  one  say,  "  I  do  not  see,  I  do  not  understand  how 
it  is  that  He  loves  us."  What  more  proof  do  you  want  that  God 
ioves  you  ?  You  say,  "  I  am  not  worthy  to  be  loved."  That  is 
true.  I  will  admit  that.  And  He  does  not  love  you  because  you 
deserve  it.  It  will  help  us  to  get  at  the  Divine  love  to  look  a  little 
into  our  own  families,  and  at  our  human  love.  Take  a  mother 
with  nine  children,  and  they  are  all  good  children  save  one.  One 
is  a  prodigal,  and  he  has  wandered  off,  and  he  is  everything  that  is 
bad.  That  mother  will  probably  love  that  prodigal  boy  as  much  or 
more  than  all  the  rest  put  together.  It  will  be  with  a  love  mingled 
with  pity.  A  friend  of  mine  was  visiting  at  a  house  some  time 
ago,  where  quite  a  company  were  assembled  and  were  talking 
pleasantly  together.  He  noticed  that  the  mother  seemed  agitated, 
and  was  all  the  while  going  out  and  coming  in.  He  went  to  her 
aside  and  asked  her  what  troubled  her,  and  she  took  him  out  into 
another  room  and  introduced  him  to  her  boy.  There  he  was,  a 
poor  wretched  boy,  all  mangled  and  bruised  with  the  fall  of  sin. 
She  said,  "  I  have  much  more  trouble  with  him  than  with  all  the 
rest.  He  has  wandered  far,  but  he  is  my  boy  yet."  She  loved  him 
still.     So  God  loves  you  still. 

That  love,  it  ought  to  break  your  hearts  to  hear  of,  and  it 
ought  to  bring  you  right  to  Him.  You  may  say  you  do  not  deserve 
it,  and  that  is  true  ;  but  because  you  do  not  deserve  it,  God  offers 
it  to  you.  You  may  say,  "If  I  could  get  rid  of  my  sins,  God 
would  love  me,"  In  Revelation,  ist  chapter,  5th  verse,  it  says: 
"Unto  Him  that  loved  us  and  washed  us  from  our  sins  in  His  own 
blood."  It  does  not  say  He  washed  us  from  our  sins  and  then  loved 
us.  He  loved  us  first,  and  then  washed  us  clean.  Some  people 
say,  you  must  turn  away  from  sin,  and  then  Christ  will  love  you. 
But  how  can  you  get  rid  of  it  until  you  come  to  Him  ?  He  takes 
us    into    His  own    bosom,    and    then     He   cleanses    us    from    sin. 


3i8  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

He  has  shed  His  blood  for  you  ;   He  wants  you  and  He  will  redeem 
you  to-day  if  you  will. 

An  Englishman  told  me  a  story  once  that  may  serve  to 
illustrate  this  truth,  that  God  loves  men  in  their  sin.  He  does 
not  love  sin,  but  He  loves  men  even  in  their  sin.  He  seeks 
to  save  them  from  sin.  There  was  a  boy  a  great  many  years  ago, 
stolen  in  London  the  same  as  Charley  Ross  was  stolen  here.  Long 
months  and  years  passed  away,  and  the  mother  had  prayed  and 
prayed,  as  that  mother  of  Charley  Ross  has  prayed,  I  suppose,  and 
all  her  efforts  had  failed,  and  they  had  given  up  all  hope  ;  but  the 
mother  did  not  quite  give  up  her  hope.  One  day  a  little  boy  was 
sent  up  into  the  neighboring  house  to  sweep  the  chimney,  and  by 
some  mistake  he  got  down  again  through  the  wrong  chimney. 
When  he  came  down,  he  came  in  by  the  sitting  room  chimney. 
His  memory  began  at  once  to  travel  back  through  the  years  that 
had  passed.  He  thought  that  things  looked  strange  and  familiar. 
The  scenes  of  the  early  days  of  youth  were  dawning  upon  him  ; 
and  as  he  stood  there  surveying  the  place,  his  mother  came  into 
the  room.  He  stood  there  covered  with  rags  and  soot.  Did  she 
wait  until  she  had  sent  him  to  be  washed  before  she  took  him  into 
her  arms?  No,  indeed;  it  was  her  own  boy.  She  took  him  to  her 
arms,  all  black  and  smoke,  and  hugged  him  to  her  bosom,  and  shed 
tears  of  joy  upon  his  head.  You  have  wandered  very  far  from  Him  ; 
there  may  not  be  a  sound  spot  upon  you,  but  if  you  will  just  come 
to  God,  He  will  forgive  and  receive  you. 

There  is  a  verse  in  Isaiah  xxxviii, — the  17th  verse, — that 
I  think  a  good  deal  of.  It  reads:  "Thou  has  in  love  to  my 
soul  delivered  it  from  the  pit  of  corruption,  for  Thou  hast  cast 
all  my  sins  behind  Thy  back."  Mark  you,  the  love  comes 
first.  He  did  not  say  that  He  had  taken  away  sins  and  cast 
them  behind    Him.      He    loved  us    first,    and  then    He    took  our 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  319 

sins  away.  I  like  that  little  word  m-y  "  my "  there.  The  rea- 
son we  do  not  get  any  benefit  from  Scripture  is  because  we  are 
always  talking  about  generalizations.  We  say :  "  God  loves  nations, 
God  loves  churches,  and  loves  certain  classes  of  people.  But  here 
it  reads  :  "  Out  of  love  to  my  soul  He  has  taken  all  my  sins  and 
cast  them  behind  His  back."  If  they  are  behind  His  back  they  are 
gone  from  me  forever.  If  they  are  cast  behind  His  back,  how  can 
Satan  ever  get  at  them  again  ?  I  will  defy  any  fiend  from  hell  to 
find  them.      Satan  can  torment  me  with  them  no  more. 

There  are  four  expressions  wherein  God  put  our  sins  away. 
The  first  is,  He  has  blotted  out  our  sins  like  a  thick  cloud.  You 
remember,  don't  you,  how  in  the  morning  we  wake  and  sometimes 
find  the  sky  covered  with  clouds,  and  by  the  afternoon  there  is  not 
a  cloud  to  be  seen.  Can  any  one  tell  where  the  clouds  go  to  ? 
They  vanish  and  we  see  them  no  more,  and  no  one  can  tell  what 
has  become  of  them.  God  has  blotted  out  our  sins  like  these 
clouds.  Another  verse  is  :  "I  will  remove  them  as  far  as  she  east 
is  from  the  west,"  Another  is:  "I  will  roll  them  into  the  depths  of 
the  sea."  And  there  is  this  one  which  reads:  "Who  will  take 
them  out  of  love  to  my  soul  and  cast  them  behind  his  back."  They 
are  gone  through  time  and  eternity.  Bear  in  mind,  it  is  out  of  love 
He  does  it,  not  out  of  justice.  It  is  not  justice  we  want,  but  mercy. 
God  feels  wonderful  love,  which  it  ought  to  break  every  heart  here 
to  contemplate,  and  the  love  of  God  ought  to  sweep  over  this  audi- 
ence, and  bow  every  head  here  to-night,  and  fill  our  hearts  full  of 
gratitude  and  praise  that  God  so  loved  us,  and  gave  himself  for  us. 
It  says  in  Galatians,  2d  chapter,  20th  verse,  "  Who  loved  me  and 
gave  Himself  for  me."  Take  that  verse  in  Isaiah,  "  Who  loved  my 
soul  *'  and  put  it  with  this  verse,  "Who  loved  me  and  gave  Himself 
for  me,"  and  you  have  it  all.  Christ  shed  every  drop  of  his  precious 
blood  for  sinners.     Some  people  say  "only    one    single    drop  of 


320  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

Christ's  blood  is  enough  to  cleanse  you  from  sin."  It  is  not  true. 
If  one  drop  would  have  done  it,  He  would  have  shed  but  one  drop  ; 
but  it  took  every  drop  of  blood  that  His  life  had,  and  He  gave  it  all 
up  to  save  us.  Paul  says,  "  He  loved  me  and  gave  Himself  for  me," 
and  so  Paul  loved  Him  in  return.  If  you  could  but  get  that  thought 
in  your  mind  that  Christ  has  loved  you  so  much  as  to  give  Himself 
for  you,  you  cannot  help  loving  Him  in  return. 

EXCUSES  OF  MEN 

"And  they  all  with  one  consent  began  to  make  excuse." — St.  Luke,  xiv.,  part  of  iSth  verse. 

We  read  in  the  14th  chapter  of  Luke  that  Christ  is  invited  by 
one  of  the  chief  Pharisees  to  take  supper  with  him  on  the  Sabbath. 
I  think  by  reading  it  carefully  you  will  find  it  was  a  snare  that  the 
Pharisees  were  setting  for  Christ,  that  they  were  trying  to  get  Him 
into  some  trouble,  in  order  to  get  some  reason  that  they  might  put 
Him  out  of  the  way.  The  law  was  that  a  man  should  not  work  on 
the  Sabbath  day,  and  the  Pharisees  were  all  the  time  bringing 
charges  against  Christ,  because  He  was,  as  they  said,  working  on 
the  Sabbath  !  And  so  this  Pharisee  invited  Him  to  his  house,  and 
there  was  a  great  company  there.  They  had  a  certain  man  there 
who  had  the  dropsy.  Undoubtedly  they  had  sent  a  servant  out  to 
get  the  man  in  so  as  to  have  him  ready  for  the  occasion.  They  had 
him  sitting  right  opposite  to  Christ.  Christ  said  to  the  Pharisees 
and  the  others  sitting  by,  "  Is  it  lawful  to  heal  on  the  Sabbath 
day?"     And    there  wouldn't  one    of    them  answer    Him    a   word. 

One  after  another,  I  can  imagine,  looked  down,  and  it  was  as 
if  they  had  said,  "  Keep  still  now,"  and  they  held  their  peace.  Christ 
said  to  the  man  v^^ho  had  the  dropsy,  "You  may  be  healed,"  and  the 
man  got  up  and  walked  home  a  perfectly  sound  man.  Christ  said 
to  the  Pharisees,  "  If  any  of  you  have  an  ass  or  an  ox  fallen  into 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  323 

the  pit,  will  you  not  straightway  pull  him  out  on  the  Sabbath  day?" 
And  they  said  not  a  word.  They  knew  very  well  that  if  any  of 
them  had  an  ox  or  an  ass  fallen  into  the  pit  they  would  save  him  if 
it  was  on  the  Sabbath  day.  But  they  said  nothing.  They  were 
all  the  time  putting  questions  to  Him  ;  but  see  how  Christ  answered 
all  these  questions.  It  would  be  well  for  you  to  take  your  Bible 
and  go  through  the  Scriptures  and  see  with  what  wisdom  and  tact 
those  questions  were  answered  that  were  put  to  Christ. 

He  said  to  the  Pharisees  gathered  there — for  he  noticed  that 
there  was  a  great  rush  to  see  who  was  going  to  get  the  best  seats. 
There  they  were  pushing  and  elbowing  each  other  back  in  order  to 
get  the  best  seats.  Christ  said,  "  Let  me  give  you  counsel.  When 
you  are  invited  to  a  feast  take  the  lowest  place.  Do  not  be  so 
ambitious  to  get  the  best  place,  to  get  to  the  head  of  the  table  ; 
because  if  you  get  there,  and  a  more  honorable  person  comes,  the 
head  of  the  feast  will  make  you  sit  further  down,  and  you  will  be 
mortified  and  ashamed."  Then  He  turned  to  the  chief  of  the 
Pharisees  who  invited  Him  and  said:  "When  you  get  up  a  feast, 
do  not  go  and  invite  the  rich,  or  you  will  be  looking  for  them  to 
invite  you  again."  Isn't  it  the  same  thing  to-day  in  the  world  ? 
When  people  get  up  a  feast,  they  invite  the  rich  and  influential,  so 
by  that  means  they  will  get  into  society,  and  their  invitations  will 
be  returned.  But,  He  said,  go  to  the  lame,  the  halt,  the  dumb,  the 
blind,  and  ask  them,  and  you  will  be  well  rewarded  for  what  you  do 
by  our  Father  in  Heaven.  A  man  sitting  at  the  table  burst  out  and 
said,  "  Blessed  is  the  man  that  shall  eat  bread  in  the  Kingdom  of 
God."  Then  Christ  said,  "  A  certain  man  made  a  great  supper 
and  bade  many  ;"  here  He  described  the  great  spiritual  feast — "and 
sent  his  servant  at  supper  time  to  say  to  them  that  were  bidden, 
'  Come,  for  all  things  are  now  ready.'  And  they  began  to 
make  excuses."     They  made  excuse.     They  did   not  have  any  to 


324  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

offer  without  making  them.  "  And  they  all  with  one  consent  began 
to  make  excuses."  A  man  gets  up  a  feast,  and  his  friends  make  no 
excuses  ;  but  God  gets  up  a  feast,  and  not  only  prepares  a  table, 
but  He  goes  forth  and  invites  them  all  to  come.  They  cannot  go  ; 
they  would  like  to  go,  they  say,  but  cannot  possibly,  they  have  so 
much  to  do.  Let  me  show  you  what  these  excuses  are,  and  you  will 
see  on  the  face  of  them  that  they  are  downright  lies.  The  Scrip- 
ture says,  "  One  after  one  they  began  to  make  excuses,"  If  those 
men  had  been  invited  to  go  out  and  walk,  if  they  had  been  invited 
to  go  to  a  hospital  to  witness  some  terrible  operation,  or  if  they  had 
been  invited  to  an  execution,  they  would  have  had  some  reason  for 
giving  excuses  ;  but  these  men  were  invited  to  a  royal  feast.  It  is 
not  often  that  common  people  like  us  get  an  invitation  to  a  royal 
feast.  If  Queen  Victoria  were  to  invite  us  to  a  feast  at  Windsor 
Castle,  do  you  suppose  we  would  not  regard  it  as  a  great  honor  ? 
Do  you  suppose  you  would  make  excuses  ?  O,  my  friends,  I  have 
an  invitation  to-day  that  is  a  thousand  times  beyond  that.  It  is 
from  the  very  King  of  Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords.  It  is  the  Mar- 
riage Supper  of  God's  own  Son.  Blessed  is  he  that  shall  be  at  the 
Marriage  Supper  of  the  Lamb.  He  wants  to  see  you  all  there. 
The  invitation  is  to  every  one  here.  All  are  invited — the  lowest, 
the  highest,  the  richest,  the  poorest,  all  can  come  if  they  will. 

Do  you  ever  think  what  would  take  place  in  a  city  like  New 
York  if  God  should  take  men  at  their  word  when  they  make 
excuses,  and  should  say  to-night,  "Well.  I  will  excuse  you,"  and  so, 
with  one  stroke  of  Providence  should  sweep  them  all  away,  and 
cease  to  care  for  those  who  refused  Him?  W^hy,  the  grass  would 
right  away  begin  to  grow  in  your  streets.  There  would  be  very 
few  stores  open  to-morrow.  Most  of  the  merchants  would  want  to 
be  excused  ;  their  stores  would  be  closed  up,  every  solitary  one  of 
them.     The  rumsellers  would  all  want  to  be  excused.     You  cannot 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  325 

find  a  rumseller  in  all  New  York  but  wants  to  be  excused.  Every 
man  that  is  carrying  on  a  dishonest  business  would  want  to  be 
excused.  I  do  not  think  there  would  be  any  crowd  here  to-morrow, 
if  that  should  take  place  in  the  next  twenty-four  hours.  What 
desolation  would  reign  in  the  streets  of  New  York,  and  how  many 
of  all  classes  would  make  excuses  !  If  I  should  step  down  from 
this  place,  and  go  right  down  the  aisle  among  the  audience,  begin- 
ning with  that  little  boy,  and  asking  every  one  down  the  line,  if 
you  had  not  an  excuse,  how  many  of  you  would  not  have  them  ? 
You  would  begin  to  find  one  before  I  got  to  you,  and  if  you  could 
not  find  one,  you  would  make  up  one,  and  if  you  could  not  easily 
think  of  one,  Satan  would  help  you  to  get  up  one. 

Let  us  take  up  the  excuses  of  those  three  men  mentioned  here. 
The  first  man  had  bought  some  ground,  and  he  must  needs  go  and 
see  it.  Why  didn't  he  see  the  ground  before  he  bought  it  ?  If  he 
had  been  a  good  business  man,  he  would  have  seen  it  first.  If  he 
had  been,  he  would  have  been  looking  at  the  title.  That  would 
have  been  the  better  way.  But  he  said  he  must  go  and  see  his 
ground.  He  had  an  invitation  to  the  supper,  and  said,  "  I  would 
like  to  go,  but  I  cannot,"  And  he  said  to  the  servant,  "Tell  the 
Lord  I  would  be  delighted  to  be  there.  I  do  not  know  anything 
that  would  please  me  more  than  to  go,  but  business  is  so  pressing 
it  will  be  utterly  impossible  for  me  to  go."  If  the  devil  can  only 
get  us  off  into  some  cradle  of  excuses  and  rock  us  off  to  sleep,  that 
is  all  he  wants.  If  would  have  been  better  if  this  man  had  been 
honest  and  said  to  the  servant,  "  Tell  the  Lord  I  don't  want  to  go 
to  the  feast."  It  is  better  to  be  honest  than  to  seek  a  refuge  of 
lies  and  false  excuses. 

And  the  other  man  could  not  accept  the  invitation  either.  I 
suppose  he  thought  to  himself,  "  How  shall  I  get  out  of  it  ?"  So  he 
said,  "  I  have  just  bought  five  yoke  of  oxen,      I  will  give  them  as 


326  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

my  excuse."  I  suppose,  perhaps  he  asked  his  wife,  ''What  sh^ll  I 
tell  him  ?"  Perhaps  his  wife  told  him,  "  Say  you  have  just  bought 
five  yoke  of  oxen,  and  that  you  have  to  go  and  prove  them."  Now, 
why  didn't  he  prove  them  before  he  bought  them  ?  And  besides, 
did  he  not  have  plenty  of  time  to  prove  them  ?  It  was  not  necessary 
for  him  to  go  just  at  the  hour  of  the  feast  to  prove  his  oxen.  He 
manufactured  the  excuse.  The  third  man's  excuse  is  more  absurd, 
if  possible,  than  the  others.  He  said,  "  I  have  just  married  a  wife." 
What  difference  did  that  make  about  his  going  ?  Why  didn't  he 
take  his  wife  along  ?  You  can  see  that  that  excuse  was  a  down- 
right lie.  So  these  three  men  made  excuses,  and  when  the 
messenger  came  back  and  gave  them  to  the  Lord,  he  said,  "  Not 
one  of  those  that  were  bidden  and  have  refused  shall  taste  of  my 
supper.  Go  and  get  the  beggars  from  the  highways  and  hedges, 
and  the  tramps  and  the  poor,  the  lame,  the  maimed,  the  dumb,  the 
blind,  and  if  these  men  won't  accept  the  invitation,  let  those  who 
will,  come."  Let  those  that  will  accept  of  the  invitation  and  press 
into  the  Kingdom.  Thank  God  that  His  Gospel  is  for  the  poor  as 
well  as  for  the  rich.  If  the  rich  won't  have  it,  thank  God  that  the 
poor  are  pressing  into  the  Kingdom. 

I  want  to  call  your  attention  to  the  fact,  that  since  these  1900 
years  have  worn  away,  men  are  becoming  very  wise,  or  think  they  are, 
and  they  say,  *'  We  have  now  outgrown  this  old  Bible,  and  are  now 
living  in  a  more  intellectual  age.  Men  are  wiser  than  they  used  to 
be.  They  have  got  a  great  deal  more  culture  ;  they  have  a  great  deal 
more  refinement."  But,  my  friends,  with  all  your  culture  and  all  your 
refinement,  can  you  find  one  man  who  has  any  better  excuse  than 
these  three  men  had  ?  I  have  met  hundreds  here  in  New  York,  in 
the  inquiry  room  and  outside  of  it,  during  the  past  few  weeks,  and 
I   have  yet  to   find  the  first  man  who  has  a  better  excuse.     My 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  327 

friend,  what  is  your  excuse  ?  Have  you  got  a  better  one  ?  Why 
do  you  not  accept  the  invitation  ?     God  invites  you. 

I  have  often  heard  people  say  "  I  would  like  to  be  a  Christian 
very  much,  but  O,  it  is  so  hard  to  serve  God."  Is  that  true?  Is 
God  a  hard  master  ?  Is  the  devil  an  easy  one  ?  Is  it  true  that 
those  who  have  served  both  masters  have  found  that  God  is  such  a 
hard  master?  Is  He  austere?  Does  He  require  us  to  perform 
more  than  we  can?  Does  He  reap  where  He  has  not  sown  ?  O,  ye 
saints  of  the  living  God,  is  that  your  testimony  ?  There  never  was 
a  greater  lie  forged  in  hell  and  told  on  earth,  than  that.  "  The  way 
of  the  transgressor  is  hard."  Ask  the  men  in  prison,  ask  the 
drunkard,  if  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is  one  of  ease. 

Go  down  to  the  Tombs.  I  am  told  that  that  little  bridge  over 
the  prison  yard  over  which  the  prisoners  are  led  has  written  on 
one  side  the  words,  "The  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard."  If  that 
is  not  true,  how  do  they  dare  put  it  on  there  ?  They  ought  to  take 
it  off.  There  is  not  a  man  in  all  New  York  but  knows  as  he  goes 
down  deep  in  his  heart  that  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard. 
On  the  other  side  of  that  bridge  it  is  written,  "  The  Bridge  of 
Sighs; "  and  over  that  the  young  men  pass  every  day,  and  every 
one  of  them  will  testify  that  that  portion  of  the  Bible  is  true  where 
it  says  the  way  of  the  transgressor  is  hard.  So  don't  give  that  as 
an  excuse. 

There  is  another  class  that  say,  "  I  believe  that.  I  believe  the 
most  delightful  service  in  the  world  is  serving-  Christ.  That  is  not 
my  excuse,  but  my  excuse  is  this  :  There  are  so  many  things  in 
that  Bible  that  are  dark  and  mysterious.  I  don't  understand  the 
Bible  from  Genesis  to  Revelation.  If  I  could  understand  the 
Bible  on  reading  it  through  once,  I  could  accept  the  invitation  ; 
but  there  are  so  many  dark  and  mysterious  things  that  I  cannot 
accept  the  invitation,"  and  so  we  find  a  good  many  giving  the  Bible 

18 


328  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

as  an  excuse.  I  contend  there  is  no  book  under  the  sun  that  has 
been  so  misjudged  as  the  Bible.  Of  all  the  skeptics  and  infidels  I 
have  ever  met,  I  have  yet  to  meet  the  first  one  that  has  read  the 
Bible  through  from  beginning  to  end.  Now,  if  a  book  comes  out 
and  you  have  not  read  all  of  it,  and  you  are  asked  your  opinion  of 
it,  you  say,  "  I  have  not  read  it  through  yet,  and  don't  like  to 
express  my  opinion  until  I  have  more  carefully  read  it."  But  peo- 
ple are  not  afraid  of  expressing  their  opinion  of  God's  book  after 
having  read  a  few  chapters,  and  because  they  don't  understand 
what  they  have  read,  they  condemn  the  whole. 

I  have  a  boy  about  say  four  or  five  years,  and  I  send  him 
to  school  to-morrow,  and  he  comes  home,  and  I  ask  him, 
"  Willie,  can  you  read  and  write  and  spell  ?  Do  you  understand  all 
about  geometry?  Have  you  finished  your  algebra?"  "Why, 
papa,"  he  says,  "why  do  you  talk  that  way?  I  have  been  all  the 
time  trying  to  learn  what  A,  B  and  C  are."  "  What ! "  I  say, 
"  have  you  not  finished  your  education  ?  I  will  take  you  right  away 
from  that  school  if  you  have  not."  Now  there  is  just  as  much  reason 
in  my  doing  that  as  there  is  in  a  man's  taking  up  the  Bible  and 
condemning  it  before  he  has  studied  it,  and  that  excuse  that  these 
men  are  giving  that  they  cannot  accept  the  invitation  because  they 
don't  understand  the   Bible,  will  not  stand  before  Christ's  tribunal. 

When  they  go  up  and  stand  before  the  Lord  they  will  say,  "  I 
was  very  anxious  to  accept  the  invitation  to  be  at  the  marriage  ser- 
vice of  your  Son,  but  there  were  many  things  in  the  Bible  that  were 
dark  and  mysterious,  and  so  I  could  not  accept  the  invitation." 
That  excuse  sounds  very  well  here,  but  up  there  you  can't  tell  that. 
You  will  be  speechless  when  you  stand  before  God's  bar. 

"Well,"  says  another,  "my  trouble  is  not  with  the  Bible, 
which  I  believe  in  from  end  to  end,  nor  do  I  have  any  trouble 
about  that  other  excuse  about  serving  Christ ;  but  the  troubJe  I 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  ^^q 

have  is  in  seeing  so  many  hypocrites,  and  I  am  not  going  to  join 
the  Church,  there  are  so  many  hypocrites.  I  know  a  person  who 
cheated  me  out  of  $5.  and  that  same  person  pretends  to  be  a  Christ- 
ian, and  so  you  must  not  ask  me  to  associate  with  hypocrites." 
Well,  I  say,  if  you  don't  want  to  associate  with  hypocrites,  you 
had  better  get  out  of  the  world  as  soon  as  you  can.  You  will  find 
one  hundred  hypocrites  outside  of  the  Church  where  you  will  find 
one  in  it.  If  you  don't  want  to  associate  with  hypocrites,  you  had 
better  accept  this  invitation  at  once.  If  I  ever  find  a  man  who  is 
a  hypocrite,  and  betrays  the  cause  of  Christ,  it  only  makes  me 
want  the  love  of  Christ  all  the  more,  and  I  want  to  serve  Him  all 
the  better.  Because  this  or  that  man  is  untrue,  is  it  any  reason 
that  I  should  like  less  the  cause  they  betray?  That  is  no  excuse 
either,  then.  It  is  a  personal,  an  individual  matter  with  you.  Sup- 
pose almost  all  men  on  the  face  of  the  earth  are  hypocrites,  it  is 
no  sign  that  I  or  you  should  be  so.  Is  that  any  reason  why  you 
should  not  become  Christ's  follower  ? 

There  is  a  young  man  over  there  who  says,  '*  Mr.  Moody  has 
not  touched  my  case  at  all.  My  trouble  is  different.  I  would  like 
to  become  a  Christian,  but  if  I  become  one,  I  am  afraid  I  won't 
hold  out."  That  is  a  very  common  excuse.  We  have  it  in  the 
inquiry  room  every  night.  "  There  is  no  one  in  New  York  that 
feels  more  anxious  to  become  a  Christian  than  I  do,"  said  a  young 
man  the  other  night,  "  but  I  am  afraid  that  I  will  not  hold  out." 
Now,  is  it  our  work  to  keep  ourselves,  or  is  it  the  work  of  the 
shepherd  to  keep  the  sheep  ?  The  keeper  of  Israel  never  slumbers 
and  sleeps,  and  is  not  the  God  of  Israel  able  to  keep  us  ?  The 
work  of  the  shepherd  is  to  take  care  of  the  sheep,  and  not  the 
sheep  to  take  care  of  the  shepherd. 

Now  the  question  comes,  will  you  trust  Him  to-day?  You 
will  be  able  to  stand  if  God  stands  with  you.     When  I  was  talking 


330  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

with  that  young  man,  it  reminded  me  of  a  boy  whom  I  knew  some 
years  ago,  whose  father  was  a  miserable  drunken  wretch  and  infidel, 
and  he  would  not  allow  a  praying  man  under  his  roof,  for  he  said 
a  man  that  prayed  was  nothing  but  a  blackhearted  hypocrite. 
Somebody  got  hold  of  his  little  boy,  and  got  him  into  the  Sabbath 
school,  and  he  was  converted.  One  day  afterward,  the  old  man 
caught  him  praying,  and  he  caught  him  by  the  collar  and  jerked  him 
to  his  feet,  commanding  him  with  oaths  never  to  be  caught  doing  that 
again,  or  he  would  have  to  leave  home  forever.  Twice  after  that 
he  caught  him  in  the  act  of  praying,  and  the  last  time  told  him  to 
leave  his  house  forever.  The  little  fellow  packed  up  his  things  in 
a  handkerchief,  went  down  into  the  kitchen  where  his  mother  was, 
and  bade  her  good-bye,  then  went  and  bade  his  little  brother  and 
sisters  good-bye,  and  as  he  passed  his  father  on  his  way  to  the  door, 
he  reached  up  his  arms  to  put  them  around  his  father's  neck,  and 
said,  "  Good-bye,  father.  As  long  as  I  live,  I  will  pray  for  you," 
and  he  went  down  the  street,  but  he  had  not  gone  a  great  while, 
before  his  father  came  after  him,  and  said,  "If  that  is  Christianity, 
I  want  it."  And  the  boy  went  back  and  prayed  with  his  father,  and 
led  him  to  Christ.  So  you  see  you  cannot  give  any  excuse  for  not 
coming  to  Jesus,  so  accept  His  invitation  this  hour  and  be  saved. 

But  there  is  another  excuse,  and  a  good  many  of  the  young 
people  give  it.  I  have  no  doubt  many  of  these  little  boys  and  girls 
here  say,  "  I  don't  want  to  be  a  Christian,  for  if  I  do,  I  shall  have 
to  be  gloomy."  I  know  that  was  one  of  my  excuses  before  I  was 
converted.  I  thought  if  I  became  a  Christian,  I  had  got  to  put  on 
a  long  face,  and  walk  on  through  the  world,  looking  neither  to  the 
right  nor  to  the  left,  and  have  no  more  joy  until  I  got  into  the 
other  world.  In  other  words,  that  Christianity  was  to  make  me 
sad  and  gloomy  and  despondent.  But  no  ;  that  is  not  religion,  for 
religion  should  make  you  happy  and  joyful.     See  this  man  on  the 


'^  '■*'  '"^-M^ 


%  m  M 


MXi-'-'  ?».-«* •^'-^ 


y*m 


i^'^i'  ^ 


•  Ttjssssi)^^;^;.'" 


SJitee.;<M$«K'»w^  aj;.-i!«>«iK j 


> 


^ 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  ^^^ 

way  to  execution.  A  pardon  fro  m  the  Governor  is  put  into  his 
hands,  and  the  poor  man  goes  hc">me  to  his  family.  Do  you  think 
that  is  going  to  make  him  gloon'^y  ?  That  is  what  the  Gospel  is. 
A  pardon  comes  from  the  throne'  of  Heaven,  and  that  is  not  going 
to  make  us  gloomy,  is  it  ?  If  a  mrm  dying  for  bread  is  given  bread, 
is  that  going  to  make  him  gloomy^  ?  That  is  what  the  Gospel  is — 
bread  to  the  soul.  If  you  give  -\,vater  to  a  man  dying  of  thirst,  a 
clear  draught  from  the  spring,  isn  't  that  going  to  make  him  happy  ? 
Christ  is  the  water  of  life.  My  friends,  it  does  not  make  people 
gloomy.  It  makes  people  gloom  y  to  want  Christ.  There  are  many 
who  profess  Christianity  that  don't  have  a  living  Christ  in  them, 
and  those  are  the  people  who  a  re  gloomy.  But  when  Christ  is 
with  us  a  living  well  of  water  gushiiig  up,  it  is  a  living  well  of  glad- 
ness. And  so,  little  boy,  little  girJ,  young  man,  young  maiden, 
don't  give  that  for  an  excuse.  Don't  say,  "  I  will  not  accept  of  this 
invitation  because  it  will  make  me  o-k^omy  and  sad."  That  is  not 
the  experience  of  the  true  Christian,  i^f  you  want  to  see  a  person 
truly  happy,  with  a  joy  that  the  world  does  not  know  anything 
about,  you  must  go  to  those  that  have  t^een  Christ's,  and  have 
caught  the  spirit,  for  He  brings  us  joy  and  l-rue  peace  and  happi- 
ness. 

Then  another  thing.  There  are  a  great  mo\ny  men  that  want 
to  come,  and  they  say,  "Wait  until  I  am  a  better  man,  and  then  I 
will  come."  I  never  knew  a  man  to  be  saved  that  Cc?.me  to  Christ 
in  that  way.  You  cannot  make  yourselves  any  better'.  You  can- 
not cleanse  yourselves.  Every  day  and  hour  that  you  are  staying 
from  Christ  you  are  getting  worse  instead  of  better.  The  Vv^ry  act 
of  your  staying  away  is  a  sin,  and  so  instead  of  trying  to  get  bet'ter, 
and  get  ready  to  come,  just  come  as  you  are  and  be  clothed  with 
the  garments  of  salvation.  He  will  clothe  you  vv^ith  His  own  right- 
eousness.  I  noticed  when  our  war  was  going  on,  men  used  to  come 


334  THREE  CHARACTi^^^RISTlC  SERMONS 

to  enlist,  and  the  man  who  came  With  a  fine  suit  of  clothes  on,  and 
the  hod-carrier  in  his  dirty  garm(-^mts,  would  both  have  to  take  off 
their  clothes  and  put  on  the  uniform  of  the  Government.  And  so, 
when  men  go  into  the  Kingdom^  of  God,  they  have  to  put  on  the 
livery  of  Heaven.  You  need  not  dress  up  for  Christ,  because  He 
will  strip  you  when  you  come  an«d  put  on  you  the  robes  of  His 
rio-hteousness.  My  friends,  you  can  not  stand  before  God  in  your  own 
righteousness.  Come  to  God  as  ,a  poor  beggar,  and  He  will  have 
mercy  upon  you. 

I  heard  some  years  ago  of  an  artist  who  wanted  a  model 
for  the  Prodigal.  He  went  to  many  institutions  and  prisons, 
but  could  not  get  a  man  who  suited  his  ideas  of  the  Prodi- 
gal. One  day,  however,  wliile  ^vvalking  down  the  street,  he  met  a 
poor  miserable  tramp,  and  he:  suited  the  artist's  eye,  so  he  asked 
him  if  he  would  be  willing  to  'sit  for  his  portrait.  The  tramp  said  he 
would,  if  the  artist  would  p'ay  him  for  it.  The  artist  promised  and 
seta  day  and  hour  for  Kim  to  come.  At  the  appointed  time, 
when  the  artist  was  sitti.:ng  in  his  studio,  the  man  came  in,  but  he 
was  so  well  dressed,  t,ne  artist  didn't  know  him,  and  told  him  he 
had  no  appointment  with  him.  When  the  beggar  told  him  the  cir- 
cumstances, the  artiist  said,  "  What  have  you  been  doing  ?  "  "Why,  ' 
said  the  man,  "  1  thought  if  I  was  going  to  sit  for  my  portrait,  I 
would  get  a  ne:',v  suit  of  clothes."  "  Ah,"  said  the  artist,  "  you  wont 
do  ;  I  wante'd  you  just  as  you  were."  So,  when  you  go  to  Christ, 
go  just  as.  you  are,  with  all  your  rags,  your  filth,  and  your  sin,  and 
He  will,  receive  you.  I  don't  care  how  bad  you  are.  He  came  for 
that  purpose,  and  there  is  not  a  man  or  woman  in  this  hall  to-night 
th:at  is  so  bad  that  Christ  would  not  have  you  if  you  will  only  come. 
You  may  be  a  thief,  a  drunkard,  a  libertine,  polluted  with  sin,  and 
corrupt  as  the  devil  would  have  you,  and  yet  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  335 

will  receive  you  if  you  will  just  come,  and  come  without  delay,  just 
as  you  are. 

But  I  need  not  go  on  enumerating  excuses  ;  if  you  drive  a 
man  from  behind  one  excuse,  he  takes  immediate  refuge  behind 
another.  If  you  drive  him  from  that,  he  gets  behind  another  like 
a  flash.  You  cannot  exhaust  excuses.  They  are  more  numerous 
than  the  hairs  upon  your  head.  I  will  tell  you  what  you  can  do 
with  them.  You  can  take  them  up  and  bind  them  in  one  bundle, 
and  mark  it,  "  Lies,  lies,  lies,"  in  great  big  letters.  God  will  sweep 
away  those  refuges  of  lies.  It  i!>  only  a  question  of  time.  By  and 
by  you  will  be  left  without  an  excuse.  He  that  believeth  not,  will 
be  without  God,  without  hope,  without  excuse.  Do  not  think  of 
giving  excuses  here.  If  you  have  any  excuse  that  you  call  good, 
if  you  have  any  excuse  that  you  think  will  stand  the  light  of  eternity 
and  of  the  judgment  day,  if  you  think  you  have  any  excuse  that 
God  will  accept,  do  not  give  it  up  for.  anything  I  have  said.  Take 
it  into  the  grave  with  you.  Let  it  be  buried  with  you,  and  when 
you  come  before  Him,  tell  it  out.  If  not,  then  give  your  excuses 
to  us  here  to-day.  It  is  easy  to  excuse  yourself  into  hell,  but  you 
cannot  excuse  yourself  out  of  it.  It  is  easy  to  take  a  seat  here, 
and  to  make  light  of  everything  you  hear,  and  go  away  laughing 
and  scoffing  at  the  whole  thing  ;  but  ah,  it  will  be  terrible  to  stand 
before  God  without  an  excuse. 

One  of  the  most  solemn  things  in  Scripture  is  that  not 
one  of  these  men  that  were  bidden  to  the  feast  of  the  Lamb 
and  refused  should  taste  of  the  supper.  That  is  to  say,  that 
God  would  excuse  them,  taking  them  at  their  word.  It  will 
be  a  terrible  thing  to  be  excused  from  that  feast.  Do  you  really 
want  to  be  excused?  Is  there  a  man  or  woman  here  that 
will  say  honestly  that  he  or  she  would  willingly  be  excused  ?  Why 
not  accept  of  the  invitation  now  ?     Let  the  plough   stand  in  the 


336  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

furrow,  let  the  oxen  stand  in  the  stall  until  you  accept  the  invita- 
tion. Let  your  business  go  until  this  question  of  eternity  is  settled 
with  you.  It  is  better  for  you  to  press  into  the  Kingdom  than  it  is 
for  you  to  attend  to  any  other  d  jty.  That  is  the  first  thing.  A 
man  must  first  attend  to  the  soul's  salvation.  If  your  wife  won't 
go,  leave  her  at  home.  If  you  cannot  get  your  family  to  join  you, 
go  alone.  Make  up  your  mind  that  to-day  you  will  be  up  and 
pursuing  that  one  object.  If  you!-  companions  make  light  of  it,  let 
them  do  it.  It  is  Christ  that  invites  you.  Did  you  ever  stop  to 
think  who  will  be  there  ?  Not  orie  who  has  washed  in  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb  will  be  missing  on  that  occasion.  I  would  rather 
have  my  heart  torn  out  of  my  body  here  on  this  platform,  and  go 
from  here  right  straight  to  Heaven  and  be  with  Him  at  last,  than 
live  a  hundred  years  and  lose  that  opportunity.  I  want  to  be  at 
the  Marriage  Supper  of  the  Lamb,  I  want  to  sit  with  Abraham 
and  Isaac  and  Jacob.  I  wan*^  to  be  in  the  presence  of  the  King  of 
Kings       Do  not  make  light  of  it. 

I  can  imagine  some  of  you  saying,  "  I  never  yet  got  so  low 
that  I  have  been  willing  to  make  light  of  religion  and  serious 
things."  Let  me  ask  you  :  Suppose  a  man  invites  me  to  his  house. 
Suppose  he  sends  me  a  note  and  invites  me  to  dinner  with  him, 
and  I  read  it  and  simply  tear  it  up  or  throw  it  aside  and  pay  no 
more  attention  to  it.  Is  not  that  making  light  of  it  ?  How  many 
will  thus  walk  out  of  this  hall,  and  make  light  of  everything  they 
have  heard  ?  Suppose  here  we  just  wTite  out  a  refusal  of  the 
invitation.  "•  To  the  Kine  of  Heaven  :  While  sittinof  in  the 
church  on  a  beautiful  day,  January,  1899,  I  received  a  pressing 
invitation  from  one  of  Your  servants  to  be  present  at  the  marriage 
supper  of  Your  only  begotten  Son.  I  pray  Thee  accept  my 
excuses."  Now,  who  would  come  forward  and  take  a  pen,  and  dip 
it  in  the  ink  and  put  his  name  to  that  ?     I  can  imagine  you  saying, 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  2>n 

"  Let  this  right  hand  forget  its  cunning  and  this  tongue  cleave  to 
the  roof  of  my  mouth,  before  I  would  be  guilty  of  such  a  thing ; 
ten  thousand  times,  No  !"  But  I  will  tell  you  what  you  will  do. 
You  will  get  up  and  go  out  and  make  light  of  the  whole  thing. 
Let  us  write  out  an  acceptance  :  "  To  the  King  of  Heaven  :  January, 
1899.  While  sitting  in  the  meeting,  I  received  a  very  pressing 
invitation  from  one  of  Your  messengers  to  be  present  at  the 
marriage  supper  of  Your  only  begotten  Son.  I  hasten  to  reply. 
By  the  grace  of  God  I  will  be  present."  Who  will  sign  that  ? 
Will  you  say  from  the  depth  of  your  heart,  ''  I  will  do  that  ?"  Some 
one  up  there  says,  "  Yes,  I  will."  Thank  God  for  that !  Why 
should  not  the  one  person  speak  for  the  whole  audience  ? 


REAPING  WHATSOEVER  WE   SOW 

'*  Be  not  deceived  :  God  is  not  mocked  :  for  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he 
also  reap.  For  he  that  soweth  to  his  flesh  shall  of  the  flesh  reap  corruption  ;  but  he  that 
soweth  to  the  Spirit  shall  of  the  Spirit  reap  life  everlasting." — Galatians,  6th  Chapter,  7th 
and  8th  verses. 

It  is  very  easy  for  us  to  deceive  ourselves  and  one  another, 
and  there  is  a  good  deal  of  deception  in  the  world.  But  you 
cannot  deceive  God. 

When  we  try  to  deceive  Him,  we  are  thinking  all  the  time 
that  He  is  like  us.  We  are  told  in  Jeremiah  that  "  the  heart  is 
deceitful  above  all  things,  and  desperately  wicked."  Any  man  who 
leans  on  his  own  understanding  will  be  deceived.  How  many  times 
have  we  deceived  others,  and  because  we  succeeded  in  doing  so, 
thought  we  could  deceive  God  ;  but  we  cannot  do  it.  You  may 
mock  us,  but  whatever  you  do  in  that  way,  don't  mock  God.  I  was 
reading  some  time  ago  of  a  young  man  who  had  just  come  out  of 
a  saloon.  He  had  mounted  his  horse.  As  a  certain  deacon 
passed  on  his  way   to  church  he  followed  the  deacon    and    said, 


338  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

"  Deacon,  can  you  tell  me  how  far  it  is  to  hell  ?  "  The  deacon's 
heart  was  pained  to  think  that  a  young  man  like  that  should  talk 
so  lightly  ;  he  passed  on  and  said  nothing.  When  he  came  round 
the  corner  to  the  church  he  found  that  the  horse  had  thrown  that 
young  man,  and  he  was  dead.  So  you  may  be  nearer  the  judg- 
ment than  you  think.  Now,  in  the  first  place,  a  man  expects  to 
reap.  That  is  true  in  the  natural  world.  Men  are  sowing  and 
planting,  and  what  for  ?  Why,  to  reap.  And  so  it  holds  true,  you 
will  find,  in  the  spiritual  world.  Not  only  that,  when  he  sows  he 
expects  to  reap  more  than  he  sows,  and  the  same  that  he  sows.  If 
he  sows  wheat,  he  doesn't  expect  to  get  potatoes  ;  if  he  wants 
wheat,  he  sows  wheat.  If  a  man  learns  the  trade  of  a  carpenter, 
he  doesn't  expect  to  be  a  blacksmith.  It  says  in  the  5th  chapter 
of  Matthew  :  "  Blessed  are  they  that  mourn,  for  they  shall  be  com- 
forted. Blessed  are  the  merciful,  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy." 
See  how  God  has  dealt  with  the  nations.  See  if  they  have  not 
reaped  what  they  sowed.  What  has  become  of  the  monarchs 
and  empires  of  the  world  ?  What  brought  ruin  to  Babylon  ? 
Why,  her  king  and  people  would  not  obey  God,  and  ruin  came 
upon  them.  What  has  become  of  Greece  and  all  its  power?  It 
once  ruled  the  world.  What  has  become  of  Rome  and  all  its  great- 
ness ?  When  their  cup  of  iniquity  was  full,  it  was  dashed  to  the 
ground.  What  has  become  of  the  Jews  ?  They  rejected  salva- 
tion, persecuted  God's  messengers,  and  crucified  their  Redeemer, 
and  we  find  eleven  hundred  thousand  of  them  perished  at  one 
time.     O,  my  friends,  it  is  only  a  question  of  time  ! 

Look  at  the  history  of  this  country.  With  an  open  Bible  our 
forefathers  planted  slavery  ;  but  judgment  came  at  last.  There  is  not 
a  family  North  or  South  that  has  not  to  mourn  over  some  one  taken 
from  them.  Instead  of  that  war  humbling  us,  how  defiant  we  became. 
Look  and  see  how  crime  has  increased  during  the  past  few  years. 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  339 

Ah,  this  fair  repubHc  will  go  to  pieces,  if  there  is  not  more  right- 
eousness ;  it  will  perish  like  the  other  nations,  if  we  don't  repent 
in  time.  I  happened  to  be  in  France  in  1867,  and  I  confess  I  could 
not  tell  the  difference  between  Sunday  and  any  other  day  ;  and  did 
not  God  punish  France  for  her  sins  ?  She  went  down  from  her  high 
station  very  quickly.  But  a  few  years  ago  she  stood  shoulder  to 
shoulder  with  the  leading  nations  of  the  earth. 

Why  have  those  nations  fallen  ?  Just  because  God  made  them 
reap  what  they  sowed.  Now  if  a  man  sows  for  this  life,  why,  he  will 
reap  in  this  life  ;  and  if  he  sows  for  eternity,  he  will  reap  in  eternity. 
If  he  sows  to  the  Spirit,  he  will  have  his  harvest  up  yonder.  If  he 
sows  to  the  flesh  he  will  reap  disappointment  and  despair ;  he  will 
reap  gloom,  and  death  and  hell ;  but  if  he  sows  to  the  Spirit,  he 
will  reap  joy  and  peace  and  long-suffering  and  gladness,  for  these 
are  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit  ;  and  not  only  that,  but  he  has  everlast- 
ing life.  Now  just  ask  yourself  to-night  what  are  you  sowing? 
Are  you  sowing  for  time,  or  are  you  sowing  for  eternity  ?  Are  you 
sowing  good  seed,  or  are  you  sowing  bad  seed  ? 

You  must  remember  the  judgment  sometimes  comes  down 
very  suddenly,  and  sometimes  it  is  deferred  ;  but  all  through  Scrip- 
ture we  find  that  God  deals  in  grace  before  He  deals  in  judgment. 
I  have  showed  you  that  God  dealt  in  judgment  with  Lot,  and  what 
a  bitter  end  his  was.  Just  take  up  your  Bible,  and,  all  through  it, 
you  will  see  that  God  deals  in  grace  and  government.  Take  that 
priest  of  His,  Eli;  he  had  two  sons  who  didn't  care  for  God.  He 
failed  to  bring  them  up  right.  They  sold  what  was  offered  to  God, 
and  became  very  wealthy ;  but  they  were  slain  in  battle  against 
the  Philistines,  and  Eli  himself,  when  he  heard  the  news,  fell  back 
and  broke  his  neck.  God  sent  a  message  twenty  years  before  that 
sentence  was  carried  out,  that  judgment  would  come.  Look  at 
the  sons  of  Jacob.     They  sold  Joseph  and  deceived  their  father. 


340  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

Twenty  long  years  rolled  away,  and  away  down  in  Egypt  their  sin 
followed  them  ;  for  they  said  :  "  We  are  guilty  of  the  blood  of  our 
brother."  The  reaping  time  had  come  at  last  for  those  ten  boys 
that  sold  their  brother.  If  God  will  punish  His  own  priest,  Eli, 
one  of  His  own  children,  won't  He  punish  those  who  have  not 
accepted  the  offer  of  salvation  ? 

Mr.  Moody  proceeded  at  length  to  show  that  Jacob  and 
David,  though  children  of-  God,  were  severely  judged  in  this  life 
for  their  sins,  and  so  continued.  So  keep  this  in  mind  that  God 
has  got  a  government.  He  may  forgive  us,  He  may  give  us  eternal 
life,  but  it  is  the  law  of  high  Heaven  that  a  man  must  reap  what 
he  sows. 

Now  bear  in  mind  that  these  three  men  were  men  of  grace. 
We  will  see  them  in  Heaven,  there  is  no  doubt  about  that.  Now 
some  of  you  will  say,  "If  God  is  going  to  forgive  me  my  sins,  how 
does  he  make  me  reap  what  I  have  sown  ?"  Well,  I  will  illustrate 
it.  Suppose  I  send  out  a  man  to  sow  wheat ;  he  neglects  to  do  his 
duty  and  sows  tares.  When  the  wheat  grows  up  I  find  it  out,  and 
call  him  to  account.  "  Well,  to  be  honest  with  you,"  he  says,  "  I 
got  mad  and  sowed  a  lot  of  tares,  but  I  am  very  sorry  for  it."  I 
forgive  him  for  sowing  the  tares,  but  when  the  reaping  time  comes, 
I  make  him  reap  them.  Why,  one  of  those  men  who  spoke  here 
to-day  was  a  drunkard  for  thirty  years.  I  have  no  doubt  his  sins 
are  forgiven,  but  O,  how  he  is  reaping  what  he  has  sown  !  His 
wife  and  his  children  are  away  from  him  ;  he  has  not  seen  his  little 
boy  for  fifteen  years  !  I  see  a  man  in  this  audience  to-night,  and 
O,  how  he  is  reaping,  how  I  pity  him.  A  few  months  ago  he  was 
in  a  happy  home  in  England.  He  gambled  his  employer's  money 
all  away,  and  now  he  is  an  exile,  a  stranger  in  a  strange  land.  God 
may  forgive  him,  but  he  must  reap  what  he  has  sown.  Some  men 
think  that  is  hard,  but  it  cannot  be  otherwise. 


THE  COUNCIL  MEET,   showing  stone  pulpit  truiu  wIulIi  Mr.  .MuuUy  spoke  to  the  btudents  in  camp. 


HOTEL  NORTHFIELD.     Uced  as  home  of  the  Northtield  Training  School  in  winter. 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  343 

1  tried  to  help  a  poor  man  in  Philadelphia.  He  had  been  in 
prison,  and  I  could  not  help  but  try  to  lift  him  up.  He  betrayed 
my  confidence,  so  we  don't  know  whom  to  help.  Now  suppose 
here  is  a  father ;  he  has  got  a  boy  who  has  gone  out  and  stolen 
some  money.  His  conscience  is  thoroughly  roused,  and  he  goes 
and  confesses  it.  "Yes,  my  boy,"  the  father  says,  "  I  will  forgive 
you,  but  you  must  go  and  confess  it."  He  don't  want  to  do  that, 
but  he  must  do  it ;  he  has  got  to  reap  what  he  has  sown.  Do  you 
think  God  would  punish  Jacob  and  his  own  children  and  let 
unbelieving  sinners  go  unpunished  ?  Do  you  think  the  ten  thou- 
sand rumsellers  of  New  York  are  not  going  to  be  punished  ?  I 
would  not  take  the  place  of  one  of  them,  if  you  gave  me  all  the 
world.  Look  at  that  little,  weak,  pale,  thin  girl,  only  six  or  seven 
years  old  ;  she  went  into  a  saloon  and  went  to  the  bar  and  said  to 
the  saloonkeeper :  "  O,  sir,  don't  sell  papa  any  more  liquor,  for 
we  are  starving."  The  rumseller  ordered  her  out.  You  think 
there  was  no  God  to  witness  that  ?  O,  there  is  a  just  God  yonder, 
and  men  are  going  to  be  gathered  there  to  give  an  account  of  their 
stewardship  by  and  by.  Do  you  think  that  libertine  who  has  gone 
and  lied  to  that  lady,  and  then  ruined  her  and  fled — do  you  think 
he  is  going  unpunished  ?  He  may  escape  the  law  on  earth,  but  he 
will  be  tried  at  God's  bar,  bound  hand  and  foot,  and  cast  into  hell. 
There  is  a  day  of  grace  now.  He  will  forgive  you  the  sin,  though 
He  will  make  you  reap  what  you  sow.  He  will  give  you  your 
eternal  life,  if  you  will  only  come  to  Him  and  confess  your  sin,  and 
is  it  not  the  very  best  thing  you  can  do  to  come  to  God  to-night  ? 

While  preaching  this  sermon  in  a  western  city,  and  saying 
over  and  over  the  text,  "Whatsoever  a  man  sow,  that  shall  he  also 
reap,"  one  man  in  the  audience  was  deeply  impressed.  He  sought 
Mr.  Moody  at  the  close  of  the  sermon,  and  when  he  could  speak  to 


344  THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS 

him,  he  said,  "  I  am  a  defaulter.  I  have  taken  a  great  amount  of 
money  from  my  old  place  of  employment  in  the  State  of  Missouri. 
I  have  a  wife  and  three  children,  and  under  your  sermon  to-night  I 
have  been  convicted.  Now  what  must  I  do  ?  The  penitentiary 
faces  me  if  I  return  to  Missouri."  Mr.  Moody  said  to  me,  when 
the  man  came  to  me  I  was  on  the  eve  of  telling  him  instantly  to  go 
back  and  confess  his  sin  and  pay  the  penalty,  but  when  I  thought 
of  my  own  wife  and  three  children,  I  said,  let  me  think  about  it 
until  to-morrow,  and  then  see  me  at  my  hotel.  I  met  him  next  day 
at  the  hotel,  and  as  soon  as  he  entered  my  room,  he  said,  "  The 
question  is  settled.  I  have  decided  to  go  back."  Sometime  after- 
ward when  he  had  been  sentenced  to  the  penetentiary,  he  wrote 
me  a  letter  in  which  he  said  that  he  had  gfone  back  to  his  old  home  ; 
had  stolen  into  the  city  in  the  night-time  and  after  the  children  were 
asleep,  had  gotten  into  his  house.  He  desired  to  spend  a  few  days 
in  fellowship  with  his  wife,  and  he  knew,  if  the  children  were  aware 
of  his  presence,  that  the  law  would  come  down  upon  him,  and  so 
he  remained  hidden  in  his  own  home.  Each  night,  vv'hen  his  wife 
would  put  the  children  to  bed,  he  would  stand  near  the  door  of  an 
adjoining  room  and  listen  to  their  prayers  and  innocent  talk.  Final- 
ly he  said,  "  Mr.  Moody,  I  heard  my  little  boy  say,  '  Papa  does 
not  love  us  any  more  ;  he  has  gone  away,  and  he  never  writes  us. 
I  am  sure  he  doesn't  love  us,'  and  Mr.  Moody,"  said  he,  "  I  thought 
my  heart  would  break,  but  it  is  true,  as  you  have  said,  I  am  reaping 
what  I  have  sown."  He  confessed  his  sin  ;  was  sentenced  to  the 
penitentiary  and  was  pardoned  out,  after  some  little  time  of  penal 
servitude. 

Mr.  Moody  was  one  day  giving  this  illustration  in  the  State  of 
Missouri,  and  he  said,  "  Some  people  have  been  disposed  to  ques- 
tion the  truth  of  this."     When  he  made  that  statement,  a  gentleman 


THREE  CHARACTERISTIC  SERMONS  345 

arose  in  the  audience  and  said,  "I  am  a  former  Governor  of 
the  State  of  Missouri."  It  was  Governor  Francis,  who  was  speak- 
ing. "  I  can  vouch  for  the  truth  of  all  Mr.  Moody  says,  for  I  par- 
doned the  man  out  myself."  "  But,  in  the  sad  story  of  the  broken- 
hearted man,"  said  the  great  evangelist,  "  we  have  a  perfect  illustra- 
tion of  the  text,  '  whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap.'  " 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

His  Best  Illustrations 

MR.  MOODY  was  a  master  in  the  use  of  illustrations.  He 
saw  in  everything  on  which  his  eye  rested  something,  that 
would  make  the  Word  of  God  more  easily  understood. 
What  other  men  would  pass  by,  he  seized  upon,  and,  under  his 
skillful  touch,  told  in  his  inimitable  way,  it  became  powerful  in 
illustrating  the  statements  of  the  Bible.  His  illustrations  always 
moved  him,  and  for  that  reason  they  took  firm  hold  upon  his  hear- 
ers. I  have,  again  and  again,  seen  the  tears  roll  down  his  face  as  he 
would  tell  some  touching  story  of  a  father's  love  for  his  child,  or 
give  some  wonderful  picture  of  the  passing  of  a  saint  into  the 
presence  of  God.  There  are  those  who  criticise  the  use  of  illustra- 
tions in  sermons,  but  Jesus  used  them,  and  was  ever  and  again 
saying,  "  Whereunto  shall  I  liken  it,"  and  would  then  tell  the  story 
of  a  prodigal  son,  or  a  broken-hearted  mother,  or  a  demoniac  boy 
— "  and  the  common  people  heard  him  gladly  " 

The  Fervor  of  His  Eloquence 

The  Honorable  James  A.  Mount,  Governor  of  Indiana,  thus 
writes  of  him  : 

"  I  unhesitatingly  pronounce  Dwight  L.  Moody  the  greatest 
preacher  of  the  century.  Classical  scholars  and  literary  critics 
may  not  agree  with  this  estimate.  Mr.  Moody  did  not  preach  to 
please  the  ear,  but  to  save  the  soul,  yet  he  moved  thousands 
to  repentance  by  the  fervor  of  his  eloquence  and  the  earnestness  of 
his  appeal 

346 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  347 

"  He  had  a  message  from  the  Holy  Spirit  to  dying  men,  and 
with  love  to  God  and  love  to  men  he  delivered  that  message.  More 
enduring  than  if  perpetuated  by  marble  shaft  will  be  the  name  of 
Moody,  for  it  is  embalmed  in  the  memory  of  loving  hearts  whom 
he  led  out  of  darkness  into  light,  and  from  the  power  of  sin  to  sal- 
vation through  faith  in  Christ.      '  He  being  dead  yet  speaketh'." 

And  whatever  may  be  given  by  men  as  the  secret  of  his  power 
as  a  preacher,  all  will  agree  in  this,  that  his  superb  power  in  the 
use  of  illustration,  contributed,  in  no  small  degree,  to  his  ability  to 
hold  and  to  sway  the  millions  of  people  to  whom  he  preached. 

The  followino^  illustration  I  have  often  heard  him  use  : 

It  is  said  that  Whitfield  once  preached  a  sermon,  in  the  midst 
of  which  a  sudden  thunder  storm  of  terrific  force  burst  upon  them, 
and,  taking  advantage  of  the  storm  to  illustrate  the  Judgment,  the 
effect  of  his  preaching  was  profound.  A  request  was  sent  to  him  to 
print  the  sermon  for  distribution  ;  he  agreed  to  do  so  on  condition 
that  the  thunder  storm  be  printed  with  it. 

To  appreciate  D.  L.  Moody's  illustrations  you  should  have 
seen  his  audience  moved  by  them,  and  you  should  have  looked  up 
into  his  face,  all  aglow  with  the  power  of  his  message,  as  I  have 
done  in  the  use  of  my  story  here  given.  The  following  are  only  a 
few  of  the  hundreds  he  used  when  I  have  heard  him  preach  : 

Infidel  Books 

People  read  infidel  books  and  wonder  why  they  are  unbelievers. 
I  ask,  why  do  they  read  such  books  ?  They  think  they  must  read 
both  sides.  I  ask,  if  that  book  is  a  lie,  how  can  it  be  one  side  ?  It 
is  not  one  side. 

Suppose  a  man  tells  lies  about  my  family,  and  I  read  them  so  as 
to  hear  both  sides  ;  it  would  not  be  long  before  some  suspicion 
would  creep  into  my  mind. 


348  HIS  ILL  USTRA  TIONS 

I  said  to  a  man  once,  "  Have  you  got  a  wife  ?" 

"Yes,  and  a  good  one." 

I  asked  :  "  Now  what  if  I  should  come  to  you  and  cast  out 
insinuations  against  her  ?" 

And  he  said,  "  Well  your  life  would  not  be  safe  long  if  you  did." 

I  told  him  just  to  treat  the  devil  as  he  would  treat  a  man  who 
went  around  with  such  stories. 

Doubts 
I  remember  laboring  with  a  man  in  Chicago.  It  was  past  mid- 
night before  he  got  down  on  his  knees,  but  down  he  went,  and  was 
converted.  I  said  :  "  Now,  don't  think  you  are  going  to  get  out  o^ 
the  devil's  territory  without  trouble.  The  devil  will  come  to  you 
to-morrow  morning  and  say  it  was  all  feeling ;  that  you  only 
imagined  you  were  accepted  by  God.  When  he  does,  don't  fight 
him  with  your  own  opinions,  but  fight  him  v/ith  John  vi.  2)7  '-  "Hiro 
that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out.'  Let  that  be  the 
"sword  of  the  Spirit." 

"The  struggle  came  sooner  than  I  thought.  When  he  was  on 
his  way  home  the  devil  assailed  him.  He  used  this  text,  but  the 
devil  put  this  thought  into  his  mind  :  '  How  do  you  know  Christ 
ever  said  that  after  all  ?  Perhaps  the  translators  made  a  mistake.' 
Into  darkness  he  went  again.  He  was  in  trouble  till  about  two  in 
the  morning.  At  last  he  came  to  this  conclusion.  Said  he : 
'I  Will  believe  it  anyway;  and  when  I  get  to  Heaven,  if  it  isn't 
true,  I  will  just  tell  the  Lord  /  didn't  make  the  mistake — the  trans- 
lators made  it' 

Let  the  Lower  Lights  be  Burning 

A  few  years  ago,  at  the  mouth  of  Cleveland  harbor,  there  were 
two  lights,  one  at  each  side  of  the  bay,  called  the  upper  and  lower 
lights  ;  and  to  enter  the  harbor  safely  by  night,  vessels  must  sight 
both  of  the  lights. 


fllS  ILLUSTRATIONS  349 

These  western  lakes  are  sometimes  more  dangerous  than  the 
great  ocean.  One  wild,  stormy  night,  a  steamer  was  trying  to 
make  her  way  into  the  harbor.  The  captain  and  pilot  were 
anxiously  watching  for  the  lights.  By  and  by  the  pilot  was  heard 
to  say,  "  Do  you  see  the  lower  light  ?" 

"  No,"  was  the  reply  :  "  I  fear  we  have  passed  them." 

"Ah,  there  are  the  lights,"  said  the  pilot ;  "and  they  must  be, 
from  the  bluff  on  which  they  stand,  the  upper  lights.  We  have 
passed  the  lower  lights,  and  have  lost  our  chance  of  getting  into 
the  harbor." 

What  was  to  be  done  ?  They  looked  back,  and  saw  the  dim 
outline  of  the  lower  lighthouse  against  the  sky.  The  lights  had 
gone  out. 

"  Can't  you  turn  your  head  around  ?" 

"  No  ;  the  night  is  too  wild  for  that.  She  wont  answer  tG 
her  helm." 

The  storm  was  so  fearful  that  they  could  do  nothing.  They 
tried  again  to  make  for  the  harbor,  but  they  went  crash  against  the 
rocks,  and  sank  to  the  bottom.  Very  few  escaped ;  the  great 
majority  found  a  watery  grave.  Why  ?  Simply  because  the  lower 
lip^hts  had  Q^one  out. 

Now  with  us  the  upper  light  is  all  right.  Christ  himself  is 
the  upper  light,  and  we  are  the  lower  lights,  and  the  cry  to  us  is, 
Keep  the  lower  lights  burning ;  that  is  what  we  have  to  do. 

They  are  Old  Enough. 

I  have  no  sympathy  with  the  idea  that  our  children  have  to 
grow  up  before  they  are  converted.  Once  I  saw  a  lady  with  three 
daughters  at  her  side,  and  I  stepped  up  to  her  and  asked  her  if 
she  was  a  Christian. 

"Yes,  sir." 


350  HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Then  I  asked  the  oldest  daughter  if  she  was  a  Christian.  The 
chin  began  to  quiver,  and  the  tears  came  into  her  eyes,  and  she  said  '• 

"  I  wish  I  was." 

The  mother  looked  very  angrily  at  me  and  said,  "  I  don't  want 
you  to  speak  to  my  children  on  that  subject.  They  don't  under- 
stand." And  in  great  rage  she  took  them  away  from  me.  One 
daughter  was  fourteen  years  old,  one  twelve,  and  the  other  ten,  but 
they  were  not  old  enough  to  be  talked  to  about  religion  !  Let  them 
drift  into  the  world  and  plunge  into  worldly  amusements,  and  then 
see  how  hard  it  is  to  reach  them.  Many  a  mother  is  mourning 
to-day  because  her  boy  has  gone  beyond  her  reach,  and  will  not 
allow  her  to  pray  with  him.  She  may  pray  for  him,  but  he  will  not 
let  her  pray  or  talk  with  him.  In  those  early  days  when  his  mind 
was  tender  and  young,  she  might  have  led  him  to  Christ.  Bring 
them  in.     '*  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  unto  Me." 

Is  there  a  prayerless  father  reading  this  ?  May  God  let  the 
arrow  go  down  into  your  soul !  Make  up  your  mind  that,  God 
helping  you,you  will  get  the  children  converted.  God's  order  is  to 
the  father  first,  but  if  he  isn't  true  to  his  duty,  then  the  mother 
should  be  true,  and  save  the  children  from  the  wreck.  Now  is  the 
time  to  do  it  while  you  have  them  under  your  roof.  Exert  your 
parental  influence  over  them. 

"  For  Charlie's  Sake/' 

Some  years  ago  at  a  convention,  an  old  judge  was  telling  about 
the  mighty  power  Christians  summon  to  their  aid  in  this  petition 
"for  Christ's  sake;"  **in  Jesus'  name;"  and  he  told  a  story  that 
made  a  great  impression  on  me.  When  the  war  came  on,  he  said, 
his  only  son  left  for  the  army,  and  he  became  suddenly  interested 
in  soldiers.  Every  soldier  that  passed  by  brought  his  son  to 
remembrance  ;  he  could  see  his  son  in  him.     He  went  to  work  for 


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HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  353 

soldiers.  When  a  sick  soldier  came  there  to  Columbus  one  day, 
so  weak  he  couldn't  walk,  the  judge  took  him  in  a  carriage,  and 
got  him  into  the  Soldiers'  Home.  Soon  he  became  president  of 
the  Soldiers'  Home  in  Columbus,  and  used  to  go  down  every  day 
and  spend  hours  in  looking  after  those  soldiers,  and  seeing  that 
they  had  every  comfort.  He  spent  on  them  a  great  deal  of  time 
and  a  great  deal  of  money. 

One  day  he  said  to  his  wife;  "  I'm  giving  too  much  time  to 
these  soldiers.  I've  got  to  stop  it.  There's  an  important  case 
coming  on  in  court,  and  I've  got  to  attend  to  my  own  business." 

He  said  he  went  down  to  the  ofhce  that  morninor  resolved  in 
future  to  let  the  soldiers  alone.  He  went  to  his  desk,  and  then  to 
writing.  Pretty  soon  the  door  opened,  and  he  saw  a  soldier 
hobble  slowly  in.  He  started  at  sight  of  him.  The  man  was 
fumbling  at  something  in  his  breast,  and  pretty  soon  he  got  out 
an  old  soiled  paper.     The  father  saw  it  was  his  own  son's  writing. 

"  Dear  Father : — 
"This  young  man  belongs  to  my  company.     He  has  lost  his  leg 
and  his  health  in  defense  of  his  country,  and  he  is  going  home  to 
his  mother  to  die.      If  he  calls  on  you,  treat  him  kindly, 

"For  Charlie's  Sake." 

*•  For  Charlie's  Sake."  The  moment  he  saw  that,  a  pang  went 
to  his  heart.  He  sent  for  a  carriage,  lifted  the  maimed  soldier  in, 
drove  home,  put  him  into  Charlie's  room,  sent  for  the  family 
physician,  kept  him  in  the  family  and  treated  him  for  his  own  son. 
When  the  young  soldier  got  well  enough  to  go  to  the  train  to  go 
home  to  his  mother,  he  took  him  to  the  railway  station,  put  him  in 
the  nicest,  most  comfortable  place  in  the  carriage,  and  sent  him  on 
his  way. 

"  I  did  it,"  said  the  old  judge,  "  for  Charlie's  sake." 


354  HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Now  whatsoever  you  do,  my  friend,  do  it  for  the  Lord  Jesus' 
sake.  Do  and  ask  everything  in  the  name  of  Him  "who  loved  us 
and  gave  Himself  for  us." 

A    Beautiful   Legend. 

There  is  a  beautiful  tradition  connected  with  the  site  on  which 
the  temple  of  Solomon  was  erected.  It  is  said  to  have  been 
occupied  in  common  by  two  brothers,  one  of  whom  had  a  family, 
the  other  had  none.  On  this  spot  was  sown  a  field  of  wheat.  On 
the  evening  succeeding  the  harvest — the  wheat  having  been 
gathered  in  separate  shocks — the  elder  brother  said  to  his  wife  : 

"  My  younger  brother  is  unable  to  bear  the  burden  and  heat 
of  the  day ;  I  will  arise,  take  of  my  shocks  and  place  with  his 
without  his  knowledge." 

The  younger  brother  being  actuated  by  the  same  benevolent 
motives,  said  within  himself ; 

"  My  elder  brother  has  a  family ;  and  I  have  none.  I  will 
arise,  take  of  my  shocks  and  place  with  his." 

Judge  of  their  mutual  astonishment,  when,  on  the  following 
day,  they  found  their  respective  shocks  undiminished.  This  trans- 
pired for  several  nights,  when  each  resolved  in  his  own  mind  to 
stand  guard  and  solve  the  mystery.  They  did  so  ;  and  on  the 
following  night  they  met  each  other  half-way  between  their  respec- 
tive shocks  with  their  arms  full.  Upon  ground  hallowed  by  such 
associations  as  this  was  the  temple  of  Solomon  erected — of  the 
world  !  Alas  !  in  these  days,  how  many  would  sooner  steal  their 
brother's  whole  shock  than  add  to  it  a  single  sheaf ! 

"  DiNNA  Ye  Hear  Them  ?" 

During  the  Indian  mutiny,  the  English  were  besieged  in  the 
city  of  Lucknow,  and  were  in  momentary  expectation  of  perishing 
at  the  hands  of  the  fiends  that  surrounded  them.     A  little  Scotch 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  355 

lassie  was  in  this  fort,  and,  while  lyinjj  on  the  t^round,  she  suddenly 
shouted,  her  face  aglow  with  joy  : 

"  Dinna  ye  hear  them  comin'  ?  dinna  ye  hear  them  comin  '  ? 

*•  Hear  what  ? "  they  asked. 

"  Dinna  ye  hear  them  comin  ?  " 

She  sprang  to  her  feet.  It  was  the  bagpipes  of  her  native 
Scotland  she  heard.  It  was  a  native  air  she  heard  that  was  beintr 
played  by  a  regiment  of  her  countrymen  marching  to  the  relief  of 
those  captives,  and  these  deliverers  made  them  free. 

Oh,  friend,  don't  you  hear  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ  calling  to 
you  now  ? 

'*  Throw  the  Reins  to  Christ  " 

An  interesting  story  is  told  of  Professor  Drummond.  He  was 
staying  with  a  lady  whose  coachman  had  signed  the  pledge,  but 
afterward  gave  way  to  drink.  This  lady  said  to  the  professor, 
"  Now  this  man  will  drive  you  to  the  station  ;  say  a  word  to  him  if 
you  can.  He  is  a  good  man  and  really  wants  to  reform;  but  he  is 
weak." 

While  they  were  driving  to  the  station,  the  professor  tried  to 
think  how  he  could  introduce  the  subject.  Suddenly  the  horses 
were  frightened  and  tried  to  run  away.  The  driver  held  on  to  the 
reins  and  managed  them  well.  The  carriage  swayed  about,  and 
the  professor  expected  every  moment  to  be  upset,  but  after  a  little 
the  man  got  the  better  of  the  team,  and  as  he  drew  them  up  at  the 
station,  streaming  with  perspiration,  he  exclaimed :  "  That  was  a 
close  shave,  sirl  Our  trap  might  have  been  smashed  into  match- 
wood, and  you  wouldn't  have  given  any  more  addresses." 

"Well,"  said  Professor  Drummond,  "how  was  it  that  it  did 
not  happen  ?" 

"Why,"  was  the  reply,  "because  I  knew  how  to  manage  the 
horses." 


356  ^/^  ILLUSTRATIONS 

"Now,"  said  the  professor,  "look  here,  my  friend,  I  will  give 
you  a  bit  of  advice.  Here's  my  train  coming.  I  hear  you  have  been 
signing  the  pledge  and  breaking  out  again.  Now  I  want  to  give 
you  a  bit  of  advice.  Throw  the  reins  of  your  life  to  Jesus  Christ." 
And  he  jumped  down,  and  got  into  the  train. 

The  driver  saw  in  a  flash  where  he  had  made  the  mistake,  and 
from  that  day  ceased  to  try  to  live  in  his  own  strength. 

A   Remarkable  Picture 

Some  years  ago  a  remarkable  picture  was  exhibited  in  London. 
As  you  looked  at  it  from  a  distance,  you  seemed  to  see  a  monk 
engaged  in  prayer,  his  hands  clasped,  his  head  bowed.  As  you 
came  nearer,  however,  and  examined  the  painting  more  closely,  you 
saw  that  in  reality  he  was  squeezing  a  lemon  into  a  punch  bowl. 

What  a  picture  that  is  of  the  human  heart !  Superficially 
examined,  it  is  thouofht  to  be  the  seat  of  all  that  is  g^ood  and  noble 
and  pleasing  in  a  man ;  whereas  in  reality,  until  regenerated  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,  it  is  the  seat  of  all  corruption.  "This  is  the  condem- 
nation, that  light  is  come  into  the  world,  and  men  loved  darkness 
rather  than  light." 

"He  Is  My   Brother" 

A  fearful  storm  was  raging,  when  the  cry  was  heard,  "  Man 
overboard  ! " 

A  human  form  was  seen  manfully  breasting  the  furious  ele- 
ments in  the  direction  of  the  shore  ;  but  the  raging  waves  bore  the 
struggler  rapidly  outward,  and  ere  the  boats  could  be  lowered,  a 
fearful  space  separated  the  victim  from  help.  Above  the  shriek  of 
the  storm  and  the  roar  of  the  waters  rose  his  rending  cry.  It  was 
an  agonizing  moment.  With  bated  breath  and  blanched  cheek, 
every  eye  was  strained  to  the  struggling  man.  Manfully  did  the 
brave  rowers  strain  every  nerve  in  this  race  of  mercy ;  but  all  their 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  357 

efforts  were  in  vain.  One  wild  shriek  of  despair,  and  the  victim 
went  down.  A  piercing-  cry,  "Save  him,  save  him  !"  rang  through  the 
hushed  crowd  ;  and  into  their  midst  darted  an  agitated  man  ;  throw- 
ing his  arms  wildly  in  the  air,  shouting,  "A  thousand  pounds  for  the 
man  who  saves  his  life  ! "  but  his  staring  eyes  rested  only  on  the 
spot  where  the  waves  rolled  remorselessly  over  the  perished.  He 
whose  strong  cry  broke  the  stillness  of  the  crowd  was  captain  of  the 
ship  from    whence  the  drowned  man  fell,  and  was  his  brother. 

This  is  the  feeling  we  should  have  in  the  various  ranks  of 
those  bearing  commission  under  the  great  Captain  of  our  salva- 
tion, "  Save  him  !  he  is  my  brother." 

The  fact  is,  men  do  not  believe  in  Christianity  because  they 
think  we  are  not  in  earnest  about  it.  When  the  people  see  that 
we  are  in  earnest  in  all  that  we  undertake  for  God,  they  will  begin 
to  tremble ;  men  and  women  will  be  inquiring  the  way  to  Zion, 

A   Fragrant  Act 

There  is  a  preacher  in  Edinburgh,  but  I  never  think  of  him  as 
a  preacher,  although  he  is  one  of  the  finest  preachers  in  Scotland. 
There  is  just  one  act  associated  with  that  man  that  I  will  carry  in 
remembrance  to  the  grave. 

There  is  a  hospital  for  little  children  in  Edinburgh,  and  that 
great  minister,  with  a  large  parish  and  a  large  congregation,  goes  one 
afternoon  every  week  and  sits  down  and  talks  with  those  little 
children — a  good  many  of  them  there  for  life  ;  they  are  incurable. 
One  day  he  found  a  little  boy,  only  six  years  old,  who  had  been 
brought  over  from  Fife.  The  little  fellow  was  in  great  distress  be- 
cause the  doctors  were  coming  to  take  off  his  leg.  Think  how  you 
would  feel,  if  you  had  a  little  brother  six  years  old  and  he  was  taken 
off  to  the  hospital,  and  the  doctor  said  that  he  was  coming  forty- 
eight  hours  afterward  to  take  off  his  leg ! 


358  ^IS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Well,  that  minister  tried  to  comfort  the  boy,  and  said :  "  Your 
father  will  come  to  be  with  you." 

"  No,"  he  said,  "  my  father  is  dead  ;  he  cannot  be  here." 

"Well,  your  mother  will  come." 

"  My  mother  is  over  in  Fife.     She  is  sick  and  cannot  come." 

The  minister  himself  could  not  come,  so  he  said,  "  Well,  you 
know  the  matron  here  is  a  mother ;  she  has  got  a  great  big  heart." 

The  little  chin  began  to  quiver  as  the  little  boy  said  :  "  Perhaps 
Jesus  will  be  with  me." 

Do  you  have  any  doubt  of  it  ?  Next  Friday  the  man  of  God 
went  to  the  hospital ;  but  he  found  the  cot  was  empty.  The  poor 
boy  was  gone  :  the  Saviour  had  come  and  taken  him  to  His  bosom. 

One  little  act  of  kindness  will  often  live  a  good  deal  longer 
than  a  most  magnificent  sermon. 

Calling  on  God 

Some  old  divine  has  pictured  Peter  preaching  on  the  day  of  Pen- 
tecost. A  man  pushed  his  way  through  the  crowd,  and  said,  "  Peter, 
do  you  think  there  is  hope  for  me  ?  I  am  the  man  who  made  that 
crown  of  thorns  and  placed  them  upon  Christ's  brow  ;  do  you  think 
He  will  save  me  ?" 

"Yes,"  said  Peter,  "  'Whosoever  shall  call  upon  the  name  of 
the  Lord  shall  be  saved.'  You  are  a  'whosoever;'  if  you  call  He 
will  hear  your  cry.  He  will  answer  your  prayer  and  save  you." 
The  man  might  have  cried  then  and  there,  and  the  Lord 
saved  him. 

Another  man  pushed  his  way  up  and  said  to  Peter,  "  I  am  the 
man  who  took  that  reed  out  of  His  hand,  and  drove  it  down  upon 
that  cruel  crown  of  thorns,  sending  it  into  His  brow ;  do  you  think 
He  will  save  me  ?" 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  359 

"Yes,"  said  Peter,  "He  told  us  to  o-q  into  the  world  and 
preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature,  and  He  did  not  mean  any  to 
be  left  out ;  salvation  is  for  you.  He  did  not  come  to  condemn 
men  ;  He  came  to  get  His  arm  under  the  vilest  sinner  and  lift  him 
up  toward  Heaven." 

Another  man,  elbowing  his  way  through  the  crowd,  pushed  up 
to  Peter,  and  said,  "  I  am  the  Roman  soldier  who  took  the  spear 
and  drove  it  to  His  heart,  when  there  came  out  blood  and  water; 
do  you  think  there  is  hope  for  me  ?" 

"  Yes,"  said  Peter,  "  there's  a  nearer  way  of  reaching  His  heart 
than  that ;  '  whosoever  shall  call  upon  the  name  of  the  Lord  shall 
be  saved.'  "  And  the  Roman  soldier  mig-ht  have  cried  then  and 
there,  and  might  have  obtained  forgiveness  and  salvation. 

If  the  Lord  heard  the  cry  of  those  Jerusalem  sinners  whose 
hands  were  dripping  with  the  blood  of  the  Son  of  God — if  He 
heard  their  cry  and  saved  them,  do  you  not  think  he  will  hear  your 
cry  and  save  you  ? 

A  Penalty   Necessary 

A  person  once  said  to  me  :  "  I  hate  your  God  ;  your  God 
demands  blood.  I  don't  believe  in  such  a  God.  My  God  is  merci- 
ful to  all.      I  do  not  know  your  God." 

If  you  turn  to  Lev.  xvii.  11,  you  will  find  why  God  demands 
blood  :  "  For  the  life  of  the  flesh  is  in  the  blood  ;  and  I  have  given  it 
to  you  upon  the  altar  to  make  an  atonement  for  your  souls ;  for 
it  is  the  blood  that  maketh  an  atonement  for  the  souls." 

Suppose  there  was  a  law  that  man  should  not  steal,  but  no 
penalty  was  attached  to  stealing  ;  some  man  would  have  my  pocket- 
book  before  dinner.  If  I  threatened  to  have  him  arrested,  he  would 
snap  his  fingers  in  my  face.  He  would  not  fear  the  law,  if  there 
was  no  penalty.  It  is  not  the  law  that  people  are  afraid  of ;  it  is 
the  penalty  attached. 


36o  HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

Do  you  suppose  God  has  made  a  law  without  a  penalty 
What  aiT  absurd  thing  it  would  be.  Now  the  penalty  for  sin  i?* 
death  ;  "  The  soul  that  sinneth  it  shall  die."  I  must  die,  or  get 
somebody  to  die  for  me.  If  the  Bible  doesn't  teach  that,  it  doesn't 
teach  anything.  And  that  is  where  the  atonement  of  Jesus  Christ 
comes  in. 

Grip  of  Promise 

Mr.  Moody  once  told  me  that  he  was  conducting  meetings  in 
Scotland,  passing  through  an  inquiry  meeting  he  saw  two  little 
girls  crying  as  if  their  hearts  would  break.  He  stopped  long 
enough  to  ask  them  their  difficulty,  and  one  of  them  replied  that 
she  wanted  to  be  a  Christian.  The  great  evangelist  took  his  Bible 
and,  opening  it  at  the  fifth  chapter  of  John,  the  24th  verse,  he 
asked  her  if  she  could  receive  that,  and,  with  her  face  brightening, 
she  said  she  thought  she  could  and  would.  The  next  night, 
passing  through  the  same  room,  he  saw  the  same  two  girls  upon 
their  knees,  and  one  of  them  crying  bitterly.  He  was  greatly 
perplexed,  and,  coming  near  enough  to  hear  their  conversation,  he 
heard  the  child  of  the  night  before  saying  to  her  companion,  "  I 
say,  lassie,  you  do  just  as  I  did,  grip  a  promise  and  hold  on  to  it, 
and  he  will  save  you,  for  he  saved  me."  And  this  is  true  not  only 
for  the  Scotch  girl,  but  for  every  one  who  will  simply  take  God's 
Word  and  trust  Him  fully. 

One  Year's  Record 

The  following  illustration  of  Dr.  Gordon  was  much  loved  by 
Mr.  Moody. 

Very  tiny  and  pale  the  little  girl  looked  as  she  stood  before 
those  three  grave  and  dignified  gentlemen.  She  had  been  ushered 
into  the  Rev.  Dr.  Gordon's  study,  where  he  was  holding  counsel 
with  two  of  his  deacons,   and  now,  upon  inquiry  into  the  nature  of 


>" 
a 
o 
o 

oi 

b 
O 

2 

< 
H 

K 

< 

O 

o 

H 
O 

K 
a, 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS  363 

her  errand,  a  little  shyly  preferred  the  request  to  be  allowed  to 
become  a  member  of  his  church. 

"You  are  quite  too  young-  to  join  the  church,"  said  one  of  the 
deacons,  "you  had  better  run  home,  and  let  us  talk  to  your 
mother." 

She  showed  no  sign  of  running,  however,  as  her  wistful  blue 
eyes  traveled  from  one  face  to  another  of  the  three  gentlemen 
sitting  in  their  comfortable  chairs  ;  she  only  drew  a  little  step  nearer 
to  Dr.  Gordon.  He  arose,  and  with  the  gentle  courtesy  that  ever 
marked  him,  placed  her  in  a  small  chair  clo§e  beside  himself. 
•    "  Now,  my  child,  tell  me  your  name,  and  where  you  live?" 

"  Annie  Graham,  sir,  and  I  live  on  K Street.      I  go  to 

your  Sunday-school." 

"You  do  ;  and  who  is  your  teacher?" 

"  Miss  B .     She  is  very  good  to  me." 

"  And  you  want  to  join  my  church  ?  " 

The  child's  face  glowed  as  she  leaned  eagerly  towards  him, 
clasping  her  hands,  but  all  she  said  was,  "Yes,  sir," 

"  She  cannot  be  more  than  six  years  old,"  said  one  of  the  dea- 
cons, disapprovingly. 

Dr.  Gordon  said  nothing,  but  quietly  regarded  the  small,  earnest 
face,  now  becoming  a  little  downcast. 

"  I  am  ten  years  old ;  older  than  I  look,"  she  said. 

"  It  is  not  usual  for  us  to  admit  anyone  so  young  to  member- 
ship," he  said,  thoughtfully.     "  We  never  have  done   so;  still " 

"  It  may  make  an  undesirable  precedent,"  remarked  the  other 
deacon. 

The  Doctor  did  not  seem  to  hear,  as  he  asked,  "  You  know 
what  joining  the  church  is,  Annie  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  "  and  she  answered  a  few  questions  that  proved  she 
comprehended  the  meaning  of  the  step  she  wished  to  take.     She 


364  HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

had  slipped  off   her  chair,  and  now  stood  close  to  Dr.  Gordon's 
knee. 

•'  You  said,  last  Sabbath,  sir,  that  the  Iambs  should  be  in  the 
fold ." 

"  I  did,"  he  answered.  "  It  is  surely  not  for  us  to  keep  them 
out.  Go  home  now,  my  child.  I  will  see  your  friends  and  arrange 
to  take  you  into  membership  very  soon." 

The  cloud  lifted  from  the  child's  face,  and  her  expression,  as 
she  passed  through  the  door  he  opened  for  her,  was  one  of  entire 
peace. 

Inquiries  made  of  Annie's  Sabbath  school  teacher  proving  satis- 
factory, she  was  baptized  the  following  week,  and,  except  for 
occasional  information  from  Miss  B.,  that  she  was  doing  well.  Dr. 
Gordon  heard  no  more  of  her  for  about  a  year. 

Then  he  was  summoned  to  her  funeral. 

It  was  one  of  June's  hottest  days,  and  as  the  doctor  made  his 
way  along  the  narrow  street  on  which  Annie  had  lived,  he  wished, 
for  a  moment,  that  he  had  asked  his  assistant  to  come  instead  of 
himself,  but  as  he  neared  the  house,  the  crowd  filled  him  with  won- 
der ;  progress  was  hindered,  and  as  perforce  he  paused  for  a 
moment,  his  eye  fell  on  a  crippled  lad  crying  bitterly  as  he  sat  on  a 
low  doorstep. 

"  Do  you  know  Annie  Graham,  my  lad?"  he  asked. 

"  Know  her,  is  it,  sir  ?  Niver  a  week  passed  but  what  she 
came  twice  or  thrice  with  a  picture  or  book,  mayhap  an  apple  for 
me,  an'  its  owin'  to  her  an'  no  clargy  at  all  that  I'll  ever  follow  her 
blessed  footsteps  to  Heaven.  She'd  read  me  from  her  own  Bible 
whiniver  she  came,  an'  now  she's  gone  there'll  be  none  at  all  to  help 
me,for  mother's  dead  an'  dad's  drunk,  an'  the  sunshine's  gone  from 
Mike's  sky  with  Annie,  sir." 


HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS      ■  365 

A  burst  of  sobs  choked  the  boy.  Dr.  Gordon  passed  on,  after 
promising  him  a  visit  soon,  making  his  way  through  the  crowd  of 
tear-stained,  sorrowful  faces.  The  doctor  came  to  a  stop  again  in 
the  narrow  passageway  of  the  httle  house.  A  woman  stood  beside 
him  drying  her  fast-falHng  tears,  while  a  wee  child  hid  his  face  in 
her  skirts  and  wept. 

"  Was  Annie  a  relative  of  yours  ?"  the  doctor  asked. 

**  No,  sir ;  but  the  blessed  child  was  at  our  house  constantly, 
and  when  Bob  here  was  sick  she  nursed  and  tended  him,  and  her 
hymns  quieted  him  when  nothing  else  seemed  to  do  it.  It  was  just 
tlie  same  with  all  the  neighbors.  What  she's  been  to  us  no  one  but 
the  Lord  will  ever  know,  and  now  she  lies  there." 

Recognized  at  last.  Dr.  Gordon  was  led  to  the  room  where  the 
child  lay  at  rest,  looking  almost  younger  than  when  he  had  seen  her 
in  his  study  a  year  ago.  An  old  bent  woman  was  crying  aloud  by 
the  coffin. 

"  I  never  thought  she'd  go  afore  I  did.  She  used  to  run  in 
regular  to  read  an'  sing  to  me  every  evening,  an'  it  was  her  talk  an' 
prayers  that  made  a  Christian  of  me.  You  could  a'most  go  to 
Heaven  on  one  of  her  prayers." 

"  Mother,  mother,  come  home,"  said  a  young  man,  putting  his 
arm  around  her  to  lead  her  away.     "  You'll  see  her  again." 

•'  I  know,  I  know ;  she  said  she'd  wait  for  me  at  the  gate,"  she 
sobbed,  as  she  followed  him ;   "but  I  miss  her  sore  now." 

A  silence  fell  on  those  assembled,  and,  marvelling  at  such  testi- 
mony. Dr.  Gordon  proceeded  with  the  service,  feeling  as  if  there 
was  little  more  he  could  say  of  one  whose  deeds  thus  spoke  for  her. 
Loving  hands  had  laid  flowers  all  around  the  child  who  had  lead 
them.  One  young  girl  had  placed  a  dandelion' in  the  small  waxen 
fingers  and  now  stood,  abandoned  to  grief,  beside  the  still  form  that 
bore  the  impress  of  absolute  purity.     The  service  over,  again  and 


366  HIS  ILLUSTRATIONS 

again  was  the  coffin  lid  waved  back  by  some  one  longing  for  one 
more  look,  and  they  seemed  as  if  they  could  not  let  her  go. 

The  next  day  a  good-looking  man  came  to  Dr.  Gordon's  house 
and  was  admitted  into  his  study. 

"  I  am  Annie's  uncle,  sir,"  he  said  simply,  "  She  never  rested 
till  she  made  me  promise  to  join  the  church,  and  I've  come." 

Dr.  Gordon  sat  in  the  twilio^ht,  resting-,  after  his  visitor  had 
left.  The  summer  breeze  blew  in  through  'he  windows,  and  his 
thoughts  turned  backward  and  dwelt  on  what  his  little  parishioner 
had  done. 

"Truly  a  marvelous  record  for  one  year.  It  is  well  said, 
Their  ang-els  do  ever  behold  His  face." 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Revival  Conventions 

IN  the  early  days  of  Mr.  Moody's  evangelistic  experience, 
frequent  revival  conventions  were  held,  when  questions  were 
asked  by  the  people  and  answered  by  the  great  leader,  as  a 
result  of  which  hundreds  of  Christian  workers  were  instructed  in 
the  special  conduct  of  evangelistic  services,  and  many  minis- 
ters went  out  to  do  the  work  which  they  felt  themselves  before 
unable  to  perform.  No  wiser  counsel  was  ever  given.  I  remem- 
ber in  one  of  these  conventions,  Mr,  Moody  spoke  as  follows  : 

What  is  Evangelistic  Service? 

"  Some  one  said  to  me,  '  What  do  you  mean  by  evangel- 
istic services  ?  Is  not  all  service  evangelistic  ?  And  what  do 
you  mean  by  preaching  the  Gospel  ?  Are  not  all  services  in 
the  churches  and  all  meetings  preaching  the  Gospel?'  "  By  no 
means.  There  is  the  greatest  difference.  There  are  really  three 
services  in  every  church  ;  at  least  there  ought  to  be  ;  there  is  wor- 
shipping God  ;  this  is  not  preaching  the  Gospel  at  all.  We  come 
to  the  house  of  God  to  worship  at  times  when  we  meet  around  the 
Lord's  table.  Then  there  is  teaching,  that  is  building  up  the  church, 
but  it  is  not  preaching  the  Gospel.  Then  there  is  the  proclaiming 
the  good  news  to  the  world,  that  is,  to  the  unsaved  ;  that  is  really 
Gospel  preaching.  Now  the  question  we  have  before  us  is  how  can 
these  services  be  conducted  to  make  them  profitable  ?  Well,  I 
should  say  first  of  all,  you  must  make  them  interesting.  If  people 
go  to  sleep  in  church,  they  certainly  need  to  be  roused  up,  and  if 
20  367 


368  REVIVAL  CONVENTIONS 

one  method  fails,  try  another,  but  I  think  we  ought  to  use  our 
common  sense  in  all  this  work.  We  talk  a  great  deal  about  this, 
but  I  think  it  is  about  the  least  sense  we  have,  especially  in  the 
Lord's  work.  This  preaching  to  empty  seats  don't  pay.  If  people 
do  not  come  to  hear  us,  let  us  go  where  they  are,  and  I  have  come 
to  this  conclusion,  that  if  we  are  going  to  have  successful  Gospel 
meetings,  we  have  got  to  have  a  little  more  life  in  them.  Life  is 
found  in  singing  new  hymns.  For  instance,  I  know  some  churches 
that  have  been  singing  about  a  dozen  hymns  for  the  last  twenty 
years,  such  hymns  as  "  Rock  of  Ages,"  "Jesus,  Lover  of  my  Soul." 
These  hymns  are  always  good,  but  we  want  a  variety.  We  want 
new  hymns  as  well  as  old  ones. 

We  Want  New  Hymns 

I  find  it  wakes  up  a  congregation  tremendously  to  bring  in 
now  and  then  a  new  hymn,  and  if  we  cannot  wake  them  up  by 
preaching,  let  us  sing  the  Gospel  into  them.  I  believe  the  secret 
of  John  Wesley's  success  was  that  he  sent  every  man  to  work  as 
soon  as  he  was  converted,  and  if  people  cannot  speak,  let  us  make 
them  sinor. 

Then,  again,  the  question  is  asked  as  to  whether  we  ought,  in 
holding  revival  services,  to  change  the  minister  every  evening  ?  I 
frequently  receive  letters  telling  me  about  special  meetings,  how 
the  people  turned  out  well,  but  there  were  no  results,  and  I  found 
out  that  they  had  a  Methodist  minister  one  night,  a  Baptist  minis- 
ter another,  an  Episcopal  minister  another,  a  Congregational  minis- 
ter another,  in  order  to  keep  all  denominations  in,  and  the  result 
was,  they  preached  everybody  out  of  doors.  One  man  gets  the 
people  all  interested,  and  just  at  the  point  where  he  needs  to  con- 
tinue his  own  ministrations,  another  steps  in,  he  goes  out,  and 
the  people   frequently  go  out  with  him.       Then    these    meetings 


kEViVAL  CONVENTIONS  369 

ought  to  be  made  short.  I  find  a  great  many  are  killed  because 
they  are  too  long.  The  minister  speaks  five  minutes,  and  a  minis- 
ter's five  minutes  is  generally  ten,  and  his  ten  minutes  quite  often 
twenty,  and  the  result  is  often  long  sermons  drive  people  out  of 
the  spirit  before  the  meeting  is  over.  When  the  people  leave  they 
are  glad  to  go  home,  and  ought  to  go  home.  Now,  you  send  the 
people  away  hungry  and  they  will  want  to  come  back.  There  was 
a  man  in  London  who  preached  in  the  open  air  until  everybody 
left  him,  and  somebody  said,  "  Why  did  you  preach  so  long  ? "  and 
he  said,  "  I  thought  it  would  be  a  pity  to  stop  while  anybody  was 
listening."  It  is  a  great  deal  better  to  cut  right  off.  Then  the  peo- 
ple will  want  to  come  back. 

The  Most  Apt  Replies  to  Questions 

At  this  point,  Mr.  Moody  paused  for  questions,  and  he  was 
always  at  his  best  when  answering  these  questions  in  such  services. 
He  had  the  keenest  mind  and  the  most  apt  replies  possible. 

Q: — Would  you  start  a  meeting  where  there  is  no  special 
interest  in  the  church  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — Certainly  I  would.  So  many  people  are  saying 
to-day  that  they  are  waiting  for  God  to  favor  Zion,  and  the  fact  is 
God  has  been  waiting  to  favor  Zion  ever  since  Pentecost.  They 
have  no  calendar  in  Heaven.  God  can  work  one  month  as  well  as 
another,  and  he  is  always  ready  when  we  are  ready. 

Q: — Suppose  a  minister  is  interested,  and  there  is  no  special 
feeling  among  the  people.     Would  you  call  in  outside  help  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — That  is  a  very  important  question.  If  I  were 
a  minister  in  a  community  or  a  church,  and  could  not  get  more  than 
one  or  two  to  sympathize  with  me,  I  would  just  get  them  around 
to  my  study,  and  we  would  pray  and  go  forth  in  the  name  of  the 


370  REVIVAL  CONVENTIONS 

Lord,  and  say,  "  We  are  going  to  have  a  meeting."  Three  men 
filled  with  the  Spirit  of  God  can  move  any  town  in  this  country. 

Q: — Suppose  the  congregation  is  alive  and  the  minister  is 
dead  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — Then  let  the  congregation  go  on  without  the 
minister. 

Q: — Suppose  the  minister  wont  permit  them? 

Mr.  Moody: — He  cannot  prevent  it.  A  man  that  wants  to 
work  for  God  can  do  so ;  nobody  can  stop  him. 

Q: — Suppose  there  is  a  difficulty  in  the  church  which  cannot 
be  removed  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — I  do  not  know  of  anything  that  is  too  difficult 
for  God.  The  trouble  is  we  are  trying  to  remove  these  difficulties 
ourselves  instead  of  going  to  God  in  prayer. 

Q: — Why  was  it  the  Lord  Jesus  could  not  do  anything  at 
Nazareth  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — On  account  of  their  unbelief,  but  that  was  the 
world,  not  the  Church. 

Q: — Is  it  best  to  put  the  test  question  In  a  church,  asking  those 
who  are  anxious  to  arise,  or  rather  to  go  to  another  room  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — I  think  so.  If  any  man  is  going  to  be  saved, 
he  is  going  to  take  up  his  cross,  and  if  it  is  a  cross,  I  would  like  to 
ask  him  to  do  it.  What  you  want  is  to  get  them  to  do  something 
they  dont  want  to  do,  and  it  is  a  great  cross  generally  for  people 
to  rise  for  prayer,  but  in  the  very  act  of  doing  it,  they  are  very 
often  blessed.  I  do  not  think  I  should  attempt  to  have  meetings 
without  the  Inquiry-room.  People  are  impressed  under  the  ser- 
mon, but  what  you  want  is  to  deal  with  them  personally.  Here 
and  there  one  is  converted  under  the  sermon,  but  for  every  one 
converted  under  the  sermon,  hundreds  are  converted  in  the  Inquiry- 
room. 


REVIVAL  CONVENTIONS  373 

Q: — Do  you  advocate  "anxious  seats?" 

Mr.  Moody: — I  would  rather  call  it  seats  of  decision  ;  but  in 
union  meetings  you  know  we  have  to  lay  aside  a  good  many  of  the 
different  denominational  peculiarities.  The  "anxious  seat"  is 
known  to  the  Methodists,  but  if  we  should  call  it  that,  the  Pres- 
byterians would  be  afraid,  and  the  Episcopalians  would  be  so 
shocked  that  they  would  leave,  and  I  find  in  the  union  meetings, 
it  is  best  to  ask  them  to  go  right  into  the  other  room,  and  talk  to 
them  there. 

Q: — What  would  you  say  to  a  person  who  replies,  "  I  can  be  a 
Christian  without  rising  for  prayer  "  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — I  should  say,  most  certainly  he  could,  but  as  a 
general  thing,  he  won't. 

Q: — What  method  would  you  recommend  to  get  people  on 
their  feet  to  testify  for  Christ  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — In  the  first  place,  I  would  bury  all  stiffness.  If 
a  meeting  has  a  formal  manner,  it  throws  a  stiffness  over  it,  so 
that  it  would  take  almost  an  earthquake  to  get  a  man  up,  but 
if  it  is  free  and  social,  just  as  you  would  go  into  a  man's  house 
and  talk  with  him,  you  will  find  people  will  appreciate  it  and 
get  up. 

Q: — If  the  world  has  got  in  and  is  stronger  than  the  church, 
what  then  ? 

Mr.  Moody; — Then  I  would  organize  another  church.  The 
mistake  in  all  this  is  in  taking  unconverted  people  into  the  v.hurch. 
We  really  must  be  more  careful. 

Q: — How  far  is  it  wise  to  encourage  young  converts  to  labor 
with  inquirers  in  the  inquiry-room  ? 

Mr.  Moody: — I  always  encourage  them.  I  believe  a  man  who 
has  been  a  great  drunkard,  for  instance,  and  been  reclaimed,  is  just 
the  man  to  go  to  work  among  his  class. 


374  REVIVAL  CONVENTIONS 

Q  : — When  a  man  feels  he  m.ust  preach  the  Gospel,  and  the 
church  doesn't  want  to  hear  it,  must  he  go  out  ? 

Mr.  Moody : — A  great  many  have  got  the  idea  that  they  can 
preach  the  Gospel,  when  they  cannot,  and  some  have  got  the  idea 
that  they  cannot  preach  the  Gospel,  and  they  can  to  a  certain  class, 
and  then  they  are  just  the  ones  to  speak  in  that  church.  Now,  I 
have  tried  that.  When  I  was  first  converted,  I  thought  I  must  talk 
to  them  about  Christ,  but  I  saw  they  did  not  like  it,  and  finally 
they  came  and  told  me,  I  could  serve  the  Lord  better  by  keeping 
still.  Then  I  went  out  into  the  street,  and  God  blessed  me,  and  I 
got  to  preaching  before  I  knew  it.  If  the  people  don't  want  you, 
don't  force  yourself  upon  them.  Go  out  and  preach  to  the  ragged 
and  the  destitute. 

Then  some  question  was  asked  about  the  inquiry-meeting,  in 
the  conduct  of  which  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  a  master.  To  this 
inquiry  Mr.  Moody  made  answer:  "If  the  ministers  would  en- 
courage their  members  to  be  scattered  among  the  audience,  to 
never  mind  their  pew,  but  sit  back  by  the  door  if  need  be,  or  in 
the  gallery,  where  they  can  watch  the  faces  of  the  audience,  it 
would  be  a  good  thing.  In  Scotland  I  met  a  man  who,  with  his 
wife,  would  go  and  sit  among  the  people,  as  they  said,  to  watch  for 
souls.  When  they  saw  anyone  who  seemed  impressed,  they  would 
go  to  him  after  the  meeting  and  talk  with  him.  Nearly  all  the  con- 
versions in  that  church  during  the  last  fifteen  months  had  been  made 
through  that  influence.  Now,  if  we  could  only  have  from  thirty  to 
fifty  members  of  the  church,  whose  business  it  is  just  to  watch  for 
those  who  are  impressed,  and  lead  them  into  an  inquiry  meeting 
when  the  pastor  announces  it,  the  results  would  be  magnificent. 
The  best  way  in  our  regular  churches  is  to  let  the  workers  all  help 
pull  the  net  in.  When  the  people  have  come  into  the  after-ser- 
vice, let  some  one  who  knows  his  Bible  sit  down   beside  them  and 


REVIVAL  CONVENTIONS  375 

give  them  God's  Word.  I  have  very  little  confidence  in  the  man 
who  simply  states  his  own  experience,  for,  as  a  rule,  that  experi- 
ence might  discourage  the  one  to  whom  he  speaks,  but  if  he 
points  out  God's  Word,  the  Spirit  is  pledged  to  apply  that  word 
to  the  seeking  soul,  and  the  result  is  salvation. 

It  is  an  awful  thing  for  a  man  to  preach  a  sermon  on  coming 
to  Jesus  and  then  dismiss  his  audience  without  giving  them  a 
chance  to  come.  Instruct  your  people  in  the  knowledge  of  God's 
Word,  and  teach  them  how  to  explain  that  word  to  the  man  who 
is  saving-,  "  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ?" 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

How  to  Study  the  Bible 

No    more    interesting   services    were    ever   conducted  by  Mr. 
Moody  than  his  Bible  Readings, 

I  remember  riding  on  the  train  with  him  at  one  time, 
and  as  we  came  into  New  York  City,  where  he  was  to  conduct  a 
service,  I  said  to  him,  "let  me  see  your  Bible,"  he  had  it  in  his 
hands,  turning  over  the  leaves,  he  laughingly  replied,  "  Oh,  no,  if 
I  should  give  you  this,  you  would  have  my  sermon  for  to-night,  and 
then  you  might  preach  it  before  I  could."  And  yet  no  one  was  more 
willing  to  give  help  to  others  than  Mr.  Moody.  He  was  always 
receivinof  from  his  friends,  but  he  was  ever  divine  to  them  in  return  ; 
and  as  for  myself,  it  has  been  dif^cult  for  me  to  preach  without 
saying,  "  Mr.  Moody  said  this,"  or  "  I  once  heard  Mr.  Moody  say," 
and  I  have  ever  found  that  illustrations  on  which  he  had  set  his  seal 
of  approval,  were  received  by  all  classes  of  people  as  authentic. 

Mr.  Moody  was  peculiar  in  this,  that  however  many  times  you 
might  hear  him  say  anything  it  never  lost  its  freshness,  and  some- 
how you  felt  that  you  were  hearing  it  for  the  first  time. 

The  following  is  a  characteristic  Bible  reading — the  theme 
being  one,  in  which  he  was  always  at  his  best : 

A  Characteristic  Bible  Reading 

In  Ephesians, 5th  chapter  and   i8th  verse,  we  are  commanded 

to  be  filled  with  the    Holy  Ghost.     A   person   who  is  full  of  the 

Holy  Spirit   deals  much  with  the  Scriptures.      OfiG  of  the  things 

we  lack  in  the  present  day  is  more  Bible  study.      I  think  this  nation 

376 


HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  ^yj 

is  just  waking  up  to  the  fact  that  we  have  had  a  famine.  It  is  not 
the  man  now  that  makes  a  fine  oration  in  the  pulpit  so  much  as  it  is 
a  man  that  expounds  the  Word  of  God  that  we  need.  A  boy 
once  asked  another  boy  how  it  was  that  he  caught  all  the  pigeons 
that  were  in  the  neighborhood.  He  said  :  '  Well,  I  tell  you,  it  is 
because  I  feed  them  well.'  If  you  feed  the  people  well  they  will 
come ;  and  people  have  got  tired  hearing  a  little  more  or  less  elo- 
quence. The  preachers  have  hitherto  used  the  Bible  merely  as  a 
text-book.  They  have  taken  their  texts  out  of  the  Bible,  and  they 
have  orone  all  over  Christendom  for  their  sermons.  The  result  is 
that  our  churches  are  weak  in  spiritual  power.  But  it  is  beginning 
to  improve  already.  The  churches  are  not  now  hunting  after  a 
man  that  will  make  a  grand  oration,  so  much  as  they  are  for  a  man  that 
will  unfold  to  them  the  Word  of  God.  That  is  what  the  people 
want.  If  they  can  only  get  back  to  the  Word  of  God,  then  we 
will  have  not  just  here  and  there  a  revival,  but  we  will  be  in  a 
revival  all  the  time.  The  church  will  be  constantly  in  a  revived 
state.  It  is  those  Christians  that  are  feedinof  on  the  Word  of  God 
that  are  revived  all  the  while.  There  is  something  fresh  about 
them,  and  people  are  glad  to  hear  them  talk. 

"  That  Book   Made  me  a  Good  Man  " 

As  we  come  to  study  this  Word  of  God,  we  want  to  keep  in 
mind  that  it  is  the  Word  of  God,  not  the  Word  of  man  ;  and  that 
as  the  Word  of  God,  it  is  true.  I  think  the  colored  man  was  about 
as  near  the  truth  as  one  need  be,  when  some  infidel  came  to  him 
and  told  him  the  Bible  was  not  true.  '  That  Book  not  true  ? 
Massa,  I  was  once  a  murderer,  and  a  thief,  and  a  blasphemer,  and 
that  Book  made  me  a  good  man.  That  book  must  be  true!  If 
it  is  a  bad  book,  it  could  not  make  such  a  bad  man  good.'  That 
is  argument  enough  ;  we  do  not  need  anymore.      Look  around  us  ; 


378  //01V  TO  STUDY  T//E  B/BLE 

if  a  man  becomes  a  profligate,  he  begins  to  talk  against  the  Bible  ; 
if  he  is  upright  he  takes  it  as  a  lamp  to  his  feet.  We  are  never 
afraid  of  a  man  that  tries  to  live  accordinof  to  the  teachino-s  of  this 
book.  This  book  is  God's  Word,  and  it  will  stand.  Over  the  new 
Bible  House  recently  built  in  London,  England,  are  written  these 
words,  '  The  Word  of  the  Lord  endureth  forever.'  That  building 
will  pass  away,  that  city  may  pass  away,  like  Babylon  and  Nineveh, 
and  other  cities  that  once  flourished,  but  the  Word  of  God  shall 
endure  forever.  Not  one  word  that  God  has  spoken  shall  fall  to 
the  orround.  We  want  also  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  Bible  is  not  a 
dry,  uninteresting  book,  as  a  great  many  skeptics  try  to  make  out. 
They  say,  '  We  want  something  new  ;  we  have  outgrown  that' 
Why,  the  Word  of  God  is  the  only  new  book  in  the  world.  All 
that  the  newspapers  can  do  is  to  tell  of  things  as  they  have  taken 
place,  but  the  Bible  will  tell  of  things  that  will  take  place.  We 
do  not  consider  the  Bible  enough  as  a  whole.  We  just  take  up  a 
word  here  and  a  word  there,  and  a  verse  here  and  there,  and  a 
chapter  here  and  there,  and  never  take  it  up  in  any  systematic 
way.  We,  therefore  know  very  little  about  the  Bible.  I  will 
guarantee  that  the  bulk  of  Christians  in  America  only  read  the 
Bible  at  family  worship  ;  and  you  will  notice,  too,  that  they  have  to 
put  in  a  book-mark  to  tell  where  they  left  off  the  day  before.  You 
ask  them  an  hour  after  what  they  have  read,  and  they  have  for- 
gotten all  about  it.  Of  course  we  cannot  get  much  knowledge  of 
the  Bible  in  that  way.  When  I  was  a  boy  I  worked  on  a  farm,  and 
I  hoed  corn  so  poorly  that  when  I  left  off  I  had  to  take  a  stick  and 
mark  the  place,  so  I  could  tell  next  morning  where  I  had  stopped 
the  night  before.  If  I  didn't,  I  would  likely  as  not  hoe  the  same 
row  over  ao^ain. 

In  order  to  understand  the  Bible  we  will  have  to  study  it  care- 
fully.    I  was  told  in  California  that  the  purest  and  best  gold  that 


//OIV  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  37^ 

they  get  they  have  to  dicr  the  deepest  for  ;  and  so,  in  studying  the 
Bible,  we  must  dig  deep.  And  there  are  a  great  many  Christians 
walking  on  crutches  in  their  Bible  studying.  They  do  not  dare  to 
examine  for  themselves.  They  go  wondering  what  others  say, 
what  Edwards  says,  what  the  commentators  say.  Suppose  you 
look  and  see  for  yourselves.  God  has  given  you  your  own  mind 
to  use.  If  we  will  go  to  the  Word  of  God,  and  be  willing  to  be 
taught  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  God  will  teach  us,  and  will  unfold  His 
blessed  truth  to  us. 

There  are  three  books  that  every  Christian  ought  to  have,  if 
he  cannot  have  but  three.     The  first   is   a  Bible — one  with  o-ood 

o 

plain  print  that  you  can  easily  read.  I  am  sick  of  these  little  fine 
types.  It  is  a  good  thing  to  get  a  good-sized  Bible,  because  you  will 
grow  old  by  and  by,  and  your  sight  may  grow  poor  and  you  won't 
want  to  give  up  the  one  you  have  been  used  to  reading  in  after  it 
has  come  to  seem  like  a  sort  of  a  life-long  companion.  The  next 
book  to  get  is  Cruden's  Concordance.  You  cannot  get  on  very 
well  in  Bible  study  without  that.  There  is  another  book  printed 
in  this  country  by  the  Tract  Society  called  the  Scriptural  Text 
Book.  It  was  brought  out  first  in  London.  These  three  books 
will  be  a  wonderful  help  to  you  in  studying  the  Word  of  God. 

Do  Not  Read  the  Bible  to  Ease  Your  Conscience 

Another  thine  :  do  not  read  the  Word  of  God  as  I  used  to, 
just  to  ease  your  conscience.  I  had  a  rule  to  read  two  or  three 
chapters  every  day.  If  I  had  not  done  it  through  the  day,  I  would 
read  them  just  before  I  went  to  bed  to  ease  my  conscience.  I  did 
not  remember  it  perhaps  an  hour,  but  I  kept  the  rule.  You  will 
never  get  much  out  of  it  in  that  way.  It  is  a  good  way  to  hunt 
for  something  when  you  read  it.  Two  words  will  give  you  the  key 
to  the  whole  Bible — Christ   and  Jesus.     The   Christ  of    the  Old 


3So  HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  :      ; 

Testament    the  Jesus    of  the    New,    and    the   two  books    explain 
each  other.     You  may  search  for  these  words  in  your  study. 

Some  time  ago  I  went  through  the  building  where  Prang's 
chromos  are  produced  in  Boston.  They  were  bringing  out  a 
chromo  of  a  prominent  public  man,  and  he  showed  me  this  picture 
in  its  different  stages  of  progress.  In  the  first  stone  there  was  no 
trace  of  a  man's  face  ;  only  a  little  tinge  of  color  that  did  not  sug- 
gest any  shape.  I  saw  the  next  stone,  and  still  no  face,  and  the 
third,  and  so  on,  and  not  until  the  fourth  or  fifth  stone  was  there 
any  likeness  of  a  face  at  all.  After  a  little  it  began  to  show,  and 
yet  not  until  I  came  to  the  fourteenth  or  fifteenth  stone  did  it  look 
at  all  like  the  man  himself,  and  not  until  the  twenty-sixth  stone  did 
it  look  as  natural  as  life.  That  is  the  way  it  is  when  we  read  the 
Scripture,  We  take  it  up  and  do  not  see  anything  in  it ;  we  read  it 
again,  but  see  nothing.  Again  and  again,  and  after  you  have 
read  it  twenty-five  times,  you  will  see  the  man  Christ  Jesus 
stamped  on  every  page. 

Study  One  Book  at  a  Time 

The  Old  Testament  was  written  only  to  teach  us  who  Christ 
was.  Moses,  the  law,  the  prophets,  they  all  testify  to  Christ. 
You  take  Christ  out  of  the  Old  Testament  and  it  is  a  sealed 
book  to  you.  It  has  been  a  great  help  to  me  in  studying  the 
Bible  to  study  one  book  at  a  time.  Suppose  you  spend  six 
months  reading  Genesis.  Getting  the  key  of  that,  you  get  the 
key  to  the  whole  Bible.  Death,  resurrection,  and  the  whole 
story  are  told  in  Genesis.  All  in  types,  to  be  sure,  and  shadows 
that  are  brought  out  further  on.  There  are  eight  great  beginnings 
in  Genesis — the  beginning  of  creation,  the  beginning  of  marriage, 
the  beginning  of  sin  and  death,  of  sacrifices,  of  the  convenant,  of 
the    nation,    and    human  race  and    Hebrew   race.     Take  up  these 


//OH^  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  383 

eight  beginnings,  and  see  what  they  teach,  and  this  key  will  unlock 
to  you  the  rest  of  the  Bible. 

If  you  just  take  the  Bible  itself  alone,  without  any  other  book 
to  help  you  to  interpret  it,  one  passage  will  explain  another.  In- 
stead of  running  after  the  interpretations  of  different  men,  let  God 
interpret  it  to  your  soul.  As  Stephens  said,  Do  not  study  it  in  the 
blue  light  of  Presbyterianism,  or  the  red  light  of  Methodism,  or 
the  violet  light  of  Episcopalianism,  but  study  it  in  the  light  of 
Calvary.  One  man  says,  "  I  am  a  Romanist,  and  it  has  got  to  teach 
what  Romanism  teaches  ; "  another  says,  "  I  am  a  Protestant,  and 
it  has  got  to  teach  me  what  Protestantism  teaches."  Take  it  up  in- 
dependent of  these,  and  after  you  have  dug  its  meaning  out  for 
yourself  it  will  be  so  much  sweeter  to  you. 

Take  The  Bible  Topically 

Another  way  is  to  take  it  up  topically.  Suppose  you  spend 
three  or  four  months  reading  all  you  can  find  about  love  ;  after  that 
you  will  be  full  of  love.  Then  take  the  word  grace,  and  run 
through  the  Bible,  reading  all  there  is  about  grace.  After  I  had 
been  studying  grace  for  two  or  three  weeks,  I  got  so  full  that  one 
day  I  could  not  stay  in  my  study  any  longer,  and  went  out  on  the 
street  and  asked  the  first  man  I  saw,  if  he  knew  anything  about 
the  grace  of  God.  I  suppose  he  thought  I  was  crazy,  but  I  was  so 
full  I  had  to  talk  to  somebody.  Then  take  up  the  subject  of 
the  blood,  then  the  subject  of  Heaven.  Some  are  troubled  about 
assurance,  and  do  not  know  whether  they  may  have  assurance  of 
being  saved  or  not ;  but  take  up  the  Bible,  and  let  God  speak  to 
you  about  it.  If  you  go  into  court,  you  will  find  that  the  lawyer 
just  gets  all  the  testimony  he  can  on  one  point  and  he  heaps  it  be- 
fore the  jury.  If  you  want  to  convince  men  of  any  grand  truth, 
just  stick  to  that  one  point.    Take  up  the  Word,  and  get  all  the  testi- 


384  ^OW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 

mony  you  can.      Bring  in  Moses  and  David  and  Joshua,  and  ever)/ 

apostle  you  can,  and  make  them  testify.      If  you  read  all  the  Bible 

says  of  forgiveness,  before  you  have  studied  it  a  week,  you  will  want 

to  forgive  every  one. 

Not  Enough  Bibles 

People  do  not  have  enough  Bibles.  Once  in  my  own  Sunday 
school  I  asked  all  the  children  who  had  on  borrowed  boots  to  rise ; 
no  one  rose.  Then  I  asked  all  those  who  had  on  borrowed  coats 
to  rise  ;  no  one  rose.  Then  I  asked  all  those  who  had  borrowed 
Testaments  in  their  hands  to  rise,  and  they  all  went  up  ;  and  I  said 
I  want  you  all  to  bring  your  Bibles  with  you,  and  about  two  months 
after  that  it  would  have  done  your  soul  good  to  see  every  child 
come  with  a  Bible.  A  great  many  people  carry  their  hymn-books, 
but  it  is  better  to  carry  your  Bible.  When  I  was  in  Scotland  I  had 
to  keep  my  eyes  open,  and  preach  exactly  according  to  the  Word, 
or  some  old  Scotchman  would  rise  and  draw  his  Bible  on  me,  and  I 
would  know  it  pretty  quick.  A  man  got  up  in  Parliament  a  few 
years  ago  and  made  a  grand  speech  full  of  eloquence,  that  took 
over  four  hours.  He  carried  all  the  people  with  him  in  one  voice. 
When  he  got  through  a  man  got  up  and  read  two  or  three  lines  of 
the  law  of  England,  and  bursted  the  whole  speech  in  a  minute. 

Some  men  are  very  eloquent  when  there  is  not  one  word  of  truth 
in  what  they  say,  but  you  cannot  know  it,  because  you  have  not  the 
Bible  knowledge.  There  are  a  good  many  people  who  wonder  that 
they  do  not  have  joy  in  their  religion.  The  reason  is  that  they  do 
not  feed  upon  the  Word  ;  that  is  where  they  get  the  joy.  If  we 
neglect  the  manna  that  God  has  given  us  for  our  soul's  nourish- 
ment, of  course  we  won't  have  joy ;  but  people  whine  and  say  it  is 
a  great  mystery  to  them  that  they  do  not  have  joy  as  others  do. 
See  how  happy  some  are  !  Why  ?  They  feed  upon  the  Word  of 
God.     That  is  why.     They  are  not  living  upon  the  old  stale  matter 


now  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  385 

of  the  conversion  that  they  had  long  ago.  It  makes  me  sick  to 
•hear  men  tell  how  happy  they  were  long  ago  when  they  were  first 
converted.  The  idea  that  they  should  not  be  happier  since  then  ! 
We  ought  to  grow  in  grace  and  be  advancing.  Suppose  I  should 
keep  telling  my  wife,  "  I  loved  you  very  much  when  I  married 
you  !"  That  is  the  way  many  treat  the  Lord,  telling  Him  how 
much  they  loved  Him  once. 

Have  a  Bible  You  Can  Mark 

About  bringing  your  Bibles  with  you — ^just  have  a  Bible  you 
can  mark.  If  I  should  go  and  hear  one  of  my  friends  preach,  and 
he  unfolded  some  grand  and  glorious  truth,  I  would  put  a  few 
words  down  upon  the  margin  of  the  Bible  that  would  just  give  me 
the  key  to  the  whole,  and  I  would  not  forget  it.  By  doing  this, 
when  you  heard  a  good  sermon  you  could  go  and  preach  it  to 
other  people.  I  hope  the  day  will  come  when  if  a  man  hears  a 
g^ood  sermon  in  the  mornino-,  he  will  be  so  full  of  it  he  will  have 
to  go  and  preach  it  over  again  in  some  locality  where  they  have 
not  heard  it.  If  the  lawyers  and  merchants  would  only  do  that  they 
would  make  better  missionaries  than  the  hired  ones.  I  think  more 
of  this  Bible  in  my  hand  than  of  all  the  other  Bibles  in  New  York. 
If  I  had  come  without  this  Bible  I  would  have  been  lonesome.  I 
have  carried  it  so  long  I  have  got  used  to  it.  Buy  a  good  Bible, 
one  that  won't  wear  out,  with  a  good  flexible  cover  that  will  fold 
around  you.  Button  up  your  coat  over  it  and  keep  it  close  to  your 
heart.  You  can  mark  your  texts  in  it  and  know  where  to  look  for 
them  at  any  time,  and  they  will  all  be  glad  to  see  you  in  any 
prayer-meeting.  There  will  be  something  fresh  about  you  that 
will  make  you  always  welcome. 

An  Englishman  said  to  me,  "  Did  you  ever  study  the  book  of 
Job?"     "No,"  I  said,   "not  particularly."     "You  ought  to,"  said 


:> 


86  //Oir  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 


he  ;  "  it  is  a  wonderful  book  ;  if  you  get  the  key  to  that,  you  get 
the  key  to  the  whole  Bible."  "  That  is  singular,"  said  I.  "  I 
thought  Job  was  more  of  a  poetical  book  ;  how  do  you  make  it 
out  ?"  He  said  the  first  division  represents  Adam  in  Eden,  a  per. 
feet  man  untried ;  the  second  head  represents  his  fall  ;  the  third 
says  "  The  wisdom  of  the  world  came  to  restore  Job."  You  can- 
not," he  said,  "  find  any  wisdom  in  all  the  books  equal  to  the  wisdom 
of  those  three  men,  but  they  could  not  help  poor  Job  out  of  his 
difficulty." 

Just  so  is  the  world  trying  to  put  Adam  back  again  ;  they 
try  to  amend  him  but  they  cannot  do  it.  Your  philosophers 
cannot  restore  Adam  to  his  original  perfection.  What  can  the 
geologist  tell  you  about  the  Rock  of  Ages  ?  What  can  the 
astronomer  tell  you  of  the  Bright  and  Morning  Star  ?  The  fact 
is  Job  could  not  stand  their  treatment.  He  could  stand  his  boils 
and  his  scolding  wife,  but  he  could  not  stand  the  way  the  wise  men 
treated  him.  The  fourth  head  is  about  Elihu ;  he  came  and 
brought  grace  and  that  is  what  Job  wanted.  He  did  not  want  law; 
Job  -was  a  righteous  man  in  his  own  conceit  up  to  this  time.  He 
said,  I  have  fed  the  hungry,  I  have  clothed  the  naked,  I  did  this 
and  that — I  !  I  !  I  ! — that  was  Job's  cry  then.  He  was  a  great 
man  ;  if  we  had  him  now  we  would  make  him  a  leader  in  some 
Presbyterian  Church  and  be  glad  to  get  him. 

God  Speaks 

Under  the  fifth  head  God  speaks.  He  says,  "  Gird  up  your 
loins  like  a  man,  I  will  put  a  few  questions  to  you."  The  moment 
Job  got  a  glimpse  of  God  he  was  adifterent  man;  his  self-righteous- 
ness was  gone.  When  I  go  into  the  inquiry-rooms  some  days  some 
have  their  heads  down  on  their  hands,  and  I  cannot  get  a  word  out  of 
them.    I  say  to  myself,  such  persons  are  near  to  God.    But  some  are 


//OIV  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  387 

flippant  and  glib,  and  say,  Why  does  God  do  this  and  why  does  God 
do  that  ?  God  alone  restores  Adam  to  his  lost  state,  and  in  his  resto- 
ration he  is  better  than  he  was  at  the  beeinnino-,  because  his  last 
state  is  eternal.      When  he  is  restored  to  Heaven   there  is  no  more 

banishment. 

Jesus  the  Key  to  the  New  Testament 

Up  to  this  point  I  have  tried  to  show  you  that  Christ  was  the 
key  to  the  Old  Testament,  now  I  will  show  that  Jesus  is  the  key  to 
the  New.  Christ  was  tempted  as  we  are,  but  He  had  not  the  same 
enemy  to  overcome.  He  that  knew  no  sin  took  upon  Him  ours. 
One  of  the  saddest  mistakes  that  young  converts  make,  is  that  of 
merely  feeding  upon  sermons  instead  of  the  Word  of  God.  You 
know  it  is  quite  an  event  In  the  family  when  the  child  gets  so  it  can 
feed  itself.  We  want  to  learn  as  quick  as  possible  to  feed  ourselves. 
If  we  will  only  take  our  Bible  and  make  up  our  minds  that  we  will 
depend  upon  our  own  study  of  the  Bible,  He  will  help  us  under- 
stand it.  If  we  try  to  study  it  in  one  way,  and  we  find  we  do  not 
like  it,  let  us  take  up  another,  and  if  that  fails,  try  another.  Some 
time  ago  my  wife  was  very  anxious  that  I  should  learn  to  like 
tomatoes.  She  liked  them  and  she  wanted  me  to  like  them.  So 
she  got  me  to  try  them,  first  raw,  with  vinegar,  and  sugar  and 
pepper,  but  I  could  not  bear  them  ;  then  she  fixed  them  another 
way,  but  still  I  could  not  eat  them.  One  day  I  came  home,  and 
she  said,  "  I  have  cooked  the  tomatoes  a  new  way."  Well,  I  tried 
them  again  once  more,  and  I  thought  they  were  the  best  things  I 
ever  tasted.  So,  if  you  take  up  the  Bible  one  way  and  don't  like  it, 
take  It  up  another  way,  and  keep  trying  until  you  find  a  way  in 
which  It  will  unfold  Itself  to  you.  You  won't  find  people  that  are 
in  love  with  the  study  of  this  Word  carrying  a  dime  novel  through 
the  street.      They  won't  walk  up  Fifth  Avenue  with  a  trashy  book 

in  their  hands.     They  will  be   reading  books  that  will  help  them 

21 


388  HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 

understand  the  Bible.  You  will  be  so  anxious  to  get  off  alone  and 
have  a  feast  upon  it,  that  you  will  have  to  reprove  yourself  for  not 
going  out  and  working  more. 

There  is  Danger  on  That  Head 

There  are  a  great  many  who  are  all  the  time  feeding  upon 
the  Word — not  in  this  country,  I  am  sorry  to  say.  I  would  rather 
be  as  they  are  elsewhere  than  as  they  are  in  this  country,  where 
they  neither  feed  on  the  Word,  nor  study  either.  But  some  people 
are  always  taking  in,  taking  in,  and  not  as  if  they  intended  to  give 
it  out.  Some  one  said  we  ought  to  fill  our  minds  like  they  fill  a 
vessel  in  the  Mississippi  river.  A  vessel  goes  up  the  Mississippi 
river,  and  takes  in  its  cargo  on  the  way,  always  with  a  view  to 
taking  it  out.  They  put  the  freight  that  is  coming  out  first  on  top. 
So  let  us  store  away  our  knowledge  with  a  view  of  getting  it  out 
again,  and  not  just  to  lumber  up  our  heads  with  a  lot  of  stuff  that 
we  never  intend  to  use.  Let  us  try  to  put  these  truths  where  we 
can  get  them  out  and  give  them  to  some  one  else.  Now,  I  see 
some  people  who  are  here  every  night.  They  get  the  best  seats 
every  solitary  night,  and  for  the  last  six  weeks  they  have  been  here 
every  night,  regularly.  And  when  they  go  into  the  inquiry-room, 
you  cannot  get  a  word  out  of  them  ;  they  won't  as  much  as  lift  a 
little  finger ;  their  arms  are  folded.  They  are  always  standing 
round  the  building  an  hour  before  the  doors  are  open.  Here  they 
are  every  night,  always  taking  in  and  never  giving  anything  out. 
But  if  we  get  a  good  thing  let  us  go  and  give  it  to  some  one  else. 

Some  one  said  he  always  studied  the  Bible  with  three  R's  in  his 
mind — Ruin,  Redemption,  and  Regeneration.  W^hen  I  open  the 
Word  of  God  I  keep  that  idea  in  view.  There  are  three  corner- 
stones that  a  man  must  know — first,  that  he  is  ruined,  or  he  does 


HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  389 

not   want  a  redeemer ;    second,   there   is   redemption   through  the 

blood  ;   and   third,   regeneration  by  the   Holy  Ghost,   born  of    the 

Spirit. 

The  Four  Gospels 

I  have  in  my  Bible  here  the  keynotes  to  the  four  books  of 
the  New  Testament.  I  will  give  you  my  idea  of  a  few  of  them. 
Matthew,  when  he  wrote  about  Christ,  writes  of  Him  as  the  Son  of 
David.  He  writes  from  the  standpoint  of  a  man  that  had  belonged 
to  the  government.  If  you  want  to  find  out  about  Christ  as  the 
Son  of  David,  you  will  have  to  turn  to  Matthew.  These  four  men, 
Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and  John,  wrote  from  different  standpoints. 
Matthew  brings  out  Christ  as  the  Royal  Son  of  David,  as  the  Heir, 
as  Abraham's  successor,  or  from  the  line  of  Abraham  to  take  the 
throne  of  David.  Mark  takes  Him  as  a  servant.  You  will  find 
Him  going  here  and  there  as  a  servant  doing  His  master's  will. 
Luke  brings  Him  out  as  the  Son  of  Man,  as  coming  in  contact  with 
man;  and  then  we  find  in  the  Gospel  of  John  he  brings  Him  out 
as  the  Son  of  God.  Luke  and  Matthew  and  Mark  do  not  go  and 
trace  Him  back  as  John  does.  John  goes  past  Adam  and  Abraham 
and  Zachariah  and  Malachi — sweeps  past  them  all,  and  brings  Him 
out  of  the  bosom  of  the  Father  ;  and  he  has  with  one  stroke  of  the 
pen  settled  the  question  of  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ.  No  one 
can  read  the  Gospel  of  John  and  believe  it,  and  still  doubt  the 
divinity  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  believe  Him  to  have  been  a  mere  man. 
He  spoke  of  Him  as  the  Son  of  God,  a  stranger  starting  out  in  the 
world  alone.  All  through  John,  He  was  meeting  sinners  alone. 
He  met  Nicodemus  alone,  and  the  woman  at  the  well.  I  have  been 
interested,  some  time  ago,  in  taking  up  for  study  the  characters 
that  had  personal  interviews  with  the  Son  of  God.  There  were 
nineteen.      Peter  had  two  such  interviews.      No  one  knows  what 


390  HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  '    ■ 

they  said.  Take  up  the  history  of- these  nineteen  persons  and  see 
how  they  were  blessed,  unless,  indeed,  they  rejected  Him,  as 
Pilate  did  ? 

One  Word  at  a  Time 

Take  one  word  at  a  time,  and  run  through  the  Bible  and  read 
all  you  can  find  on  that  point.  Take  words  "  I  Am."  When  the 
Lord  sent  Moses  to  Egypt,  Moses  was  reluctant  to  go,  and  he  said 
as  a  last  excuse,  "  If  I  tell  them  that  I  have  been  sent,  whom  shall 
I  tell  them  has  sent  me  ?  "  And  the  Lord  said,  "  Tell  them  I  Am." 
Some  one  said  that  was  the  same  as  a  blank  check  eiven  to  Moses : 
and  that  when  he  got  down  in  Egypt  and  they  wanted  water,  he 
just  filled  in  the  check  with  water,  and  they  got  it.  Take  the  word 
"verily"  of  St.  John.  Whenever  you  see  that  word,  you  may  feel 
sure  there  is  some  great  truth  coming  after  it.  Some  time  ago  I 
was  blessed  in  taking  up  the  seven  blessings  of  Revelation  for 
study.  Some  people  say  you  cannot  understand  Revelation. 
They  say  the  deep  theologians  can  understand  it,  but  common 
people  cannot.  Why,  it  is  the  one  book  that  tells  of  the  downfall 
of  the  devil,  and  the  devil  does  not  want  us  to  find  that  out,  so  he 
says  to  us,  "You  cannot  understand  Revelation."  It  is  the  one 
book  in  the  Bible  that  opens  with  a  benediction.  It  tells  us  of  the 
marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb.  We  get  a  great  deal  in  Revela- 
tion that  is  not  found  in  any  other  part  of  the  Bible.  All  Scripture 
is  given  by  inspiration,  and  all  is  profitable  for  reproof  and  correc- 
tion, that  a  man  of  God  may  be  thoroughly  furnished.  We  want 
to  take  the  Bible  from  Genesis  to  Revelation.  Do  not  let  us  join  the 
unbelieving,  scoffing  world  that  says  we  cannot  understand  Revela- 
tion. "  Blessed  are  those  that  watch.  Blessed  are  those  that  keep 
from  the  world.  Blessed  are  the  dead  that  die  in  the  Lord,  for 
they  shall  rest  from  their  labors.  Blessed  are  they  that  have  part 
in  the  first  resurrection."    Let  us  have  apart  in  the  first  resurrection. 


HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  391 

And  the  last  is,  "  Blessed  are  they  that  shall  be  at  the  mar- 
riage supper  of  the  Lamb."  Take  these  seven  blessings  and  put 
them  together  and  study  them. 

Six  Things  Worth  Knowing 

I  take  up  one  chapter  in  the  Epistle  of  John  with  the  word 
"  know."  There  are  six  things  worth  knowing.  The  first  verse  and 
third  chapter  says,  "  We  know  He  is  manifested  to  take  away  sin." 
That  is  what  Jesus  came  for.  We  know  it  because  God  said  it. 
Some  people  say  it  makes  no  difference  what  a  man  believes  if  he  is 
sincere  in  his  belief.  Why  it  makes  all  the  difference  in  the  world. 
What  we  believe  we  know  to  be  true.  We  are  not  deluded  and 
deceived  into  believing  it.  The  Spirit  of  God  has  borne  witness  to 
its  truth. 

Take  the  third  thing  worth  knowing,  In  the  14th  verse.  "  We 
know  that  we  have  passed  from  death  unto  life."  How  many  in 
this  audience  to-night  know  that.  Suppose  I  should  ask  this  audi- 
ence, how  many  could  say  they  knew  it  ?  Some  people  think  it  is 
not  the  privilege  of  any  one  to  know  that.  But  this  is  a  great  mis- 
take. If  I  did  not  know  it  now  I  would  not  go  to  my  dinner  this 
day  or  to  my  bed  this  night  until  I  did  know  it.  It  is  worth  know- 
ing. Christ  came  to  call  us  from  death  to  life.  Do  you  think  we 
have  to  go  on  in  this  terrible  uncertainty  not  knowing  whether  we 
are  saved  or  not.  God  does  not  leave  us  with  that  uncertainty. 
But  if  you  have  malice  and  hatred  against  some  one,  that  is  a  sure 
sign  that  you  have  not  got  the  spirit  of  Christ.  You  may  know 
you  have  not  been  born  of  God,  for  God  is  love. 

The  fifth  thing  worth  knowing  is  in  the  24th  verse,  "  We  know 
that  He  abideth  with  us,  by  the  Spirit  which  He  hath  given  us."  If 
we  are  out  backbiting  our  neighbors,  and  living  like  the  world,  it  is 
good  evidence  that  we  have  not  been  born  of  God. 


392  HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 

The  sixth  thing  worth  knowing  is  the  best  of  all.  It  is  in  the 
2d  verse:  "  Beloved,  now  are  we  the  sons  of  God."  John  wanted 
to  disabuse  them  of  the  idea  that  they  were  not  sons  of  Heaven. 
I  heard  a  man  pray  in  a  prayer-meeting  :  "  When  we  come  to  die 
may  we  be  the  sons  of  God."  But  "  now  are  we  the  sons  of  God," 
it  says.  "  It  does  not  yet  appear  what  we  shall  be."  The  world 
does  not  yet  know  the  difference,  but  it  will  be  revealed  by-and-by. 
There  was  a  little  boy  in  Boston  who  was  probably  the  richest  per- 
son in  all  Boston.  The  little  child  did  not  know  that  he  was  heir 
to  a  great  estate.  So,  Christians,  many  of  them,  don't  know  that 
they  are  heirs  to  all  things.  We  will  come  into  possession  of  our 
inheritance  by-and-by.  What  God  wants  is  to  have  us  live  for  that 
inheritance.  He  has  had  it  in  store  for  us  where  He  dwells.  Satan 
cannot  get  there  to  get  it  out,  though  he  would  like  to  if  he  could. 
It  is  kept  for  us,  and  He  keeps  us  for  it.  The  day  I  first  got 
hold  of  those  truths  I  could  not  hold  my  peace.  When  people 
came  in  I  said  to  them,  '•  I  have  got  some  honey  out  of  the  rock," 
and  I  gave  it  to  my  friends.      So  we   can  help  one  another  in  our 

wilderness  journey. 

Whom  is  it  Written  to? 

The  power  of  the  Holy  One  is  unlimited.  If  you  have  rela- 
tives who  have  no  faith,  and  they  are  running  down  these  meetings, 
do  not  get  discouraged.  The  Lord  God  is  able  to  save  them.  In 
the  first  twelve  chapters  of  John,  you  will  find  Christ  dealing  with 
sinners  altogether.  In  the  8th  chapter  of  John,  they  are  going  to 
tell  Him  that  they  doubt  His  word.  In  the  loth  chapter.  He  is 
going  to  have  His  sheep  in  spite  of  those  unbelieving  Jews.  In  the 
iith  chapter,  the  Jews  are  going  to  put  Lazarus  out  of  the  way, 
because  on  account  of  Lazarus's  testimony  all  men  were  believing. 
From  the  13th  to  the  17th  chapters,  you  will  find  Christ  dealing 
with  His  Church.     When  you  take  a  chapter  like  that,   you  should 


HOW  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  tj^t^ 

consider  whom  the  chapter  is  addressed  to.  We  would  not  have 
any  trouble  about  the  doctrine  of  election  if  we  considered  that  it 
was  addressed  to  the  Church,  to  believers.  Suppose  I  should  find 
a  dispatch  on  the  floor,  saying,  "Your  wife  is  dead,"  I  would  say, 
"  My  wife  dead !  How  can  that  be,  and  I  not  know  of  it  ?  "  But  sup- 
pose I  should  find  on  the  back  of  the  envelope  that  it  was  addressed 
to  some  one  else,  and  not  to  me,  the  case  would  be  different.  We 
must  understand  whom  it  is  written  to.  The  whole  Bible  is  not 
directed  to  sinners.  A  good  deal  of  it  is  addressed  to  certain 
classes  and  individuals,  and  a  great  deal  is  addressed  to  the  whole 
world.      In  the  13th  of  John,  he  has  Christ  dealing  with  the  disciples. 

How  Christ  Dealt  With  Sinners 

There  are  certain  passages  addressed  to  the  wicked,  and  certain 
passages  to  God's  people.     Very  often  a  sinner  will  get  hold  of  some 
comforting  word   addressed  to  a  Christian,  and  he  will  go  and  take 
comfort  in  it  when  he  has  no  right  to,  any  more  than  I  would  have 
a  right  to  read  some   one's  letters.      In  the  17th  chapter  of  John, 
Christ  is  with  the  Father.      In  the   i8th  chapter  of  John,  Christ  is 
in  the  hands  of  His  enemies.      And  so  you  just  take  any  one  book 
and  divide  it  up  like  that.     Take  the  subject  of  the  gifts  of  Christ 
and,  with   the   word  gifts,  learn   all  that  is  written  of  the  gifts  of 
Christ  and  the  gifts  of    Satan.      For  Christ's  gifts  there  are  the 
bread  of    Life  and  the  Holy  Spirit  and  peace,  and  joy,    and  love, 
and  mercy,  and  the  morning  star,  and  mansions.     Take  these  gifts 
and  put  them  down,  and  then   put  down  beside  them  the  gifts  of 
Satan   for  serving  him,  and   compare   them.     See  if  you  will  turn 
your  back  upon  all  these  blessed  gifts  of   God  for  the  sake  of  the 
few  fleeting  moments  of  time  here,     and  the  baubles  which,  when 
you  have  got  them,  do  not  satisfy  you. 


394  I/O IV  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE 

I  want  to  speak  of  the  seven  ,different  characters  in  John,  and 
how  Christ  dealt  with  them. 

Suppose  we  could  divide  up  these  sinners  here  under  these 
seven  heads.  Turn  to  the  7th  chapter  of  John,  and  see  how 
Christ  dealt  with  that  respectable  sinner,  Nicodemus.  He  set  him 
aside  entirely.  He  did  not  put  a  new  piece  into  the  old  garment ; 
the  Lord  does  not  patch  a  man's  coat.  He  gives  him  a  new  coat 
throughout.  He  told  Nicodemus  he  must  be  born  again.  In  the 
4th  chapter,  see  how  Christ  deals  with  one  who  has  fallen.  She  is 
not  very  respectable,  but  He  gives  her  the  water  of  life.  We  can- 
not find  any  class  of  people  in  New  York  that  has  not  its  represen- 
tative in  the  Bible,  and  Christ's  dealings  with  them.  A  nobleman 
came  to  Him,  whose  child  was  ill.  He  told  him  to  go  home,  his 
child  would  live  ;  He  did  not  give  the  nobleman  any  medicine  for 
his  child,  but  the  man  took  His  word,  and  when  he  got  home  he 
found  the  child  was  nearly  well,  and  that  it  was  better  from  the 
seventh  hour,  when  he  had  spoken  to  Christ. 

"Take  up  Thy  Bed  And  Walk" 

If  some  poor  tramp  should  read  these  words  who  has  not  got 
any  friends,  or  anywhere  to  lay  his  head,  a  poor  miserable 
sinner,  if  he  will  turn  to  the  5th  chapter  of  John,  he  will  know  how 
Christ  will  deal  with  him.  There  was  just  such  a  poor  beggar  at 
the  pool.  Christ  asked  him  if  he  would  like  to  touch  the  waters  ; 
he  said,  "  I  would  like  to  be  put  in,  but  I  haven't  any  one  to  help 
me  ;  I  am  lame  ;"  and  the  Lord  said,  "  Take  up  thy  bed  and  walk." 
He  cured  him  by  a  word. 

I  can  imagine  in  the  gallery  there  is  a  man  who  says  :  "  I 
wish  there  was  some  class  in  the  Bible  that  represented  me. 
I  have  broken  the  law.  If  the  law  should  get  hold  of  me  I 
would    have    to    go    to    prison    for   twenty   years ;    the  police    do 


//OIV  TO  STUDY  THE  BIBLE  395 

not  know  ;  I  have  covered  up  my  sin.  I  wish  there  was  some- 
thintr  in  the  Bible  for  me."  Well,  there  is  ;  there  is.  Turn  to 
the  8th  chapter  of  John.  You  will  see  how  Christ  dealt  with  a 
woman  whom  the  law  would  have  stoned  to  death.  They  dragged 
her  into  the  presence  of  Christ,  saying,  "  The  law  of  Moses  says, 
'  stone  her  to  death  ;'  what  sayest  thou  ?"  He  stooped  and  wrote 
on  the  ground  as  if  He  paid  no  attention  ;  then  He  raised  up  and 
said,  "  He  that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let  him  cast  the  first 
stone,"  and  He  went  on  writing  on  the  ground.  When  He  looked 
up  again  the  crowd  had  disappeared.  He  said,  "  Where  are  thy 
accusers?  Go  thou  and  sin  no  more."  If  you  want  to  know  how 
Christ  dealt  with  sinners,  ofo  to  the  Bible.  There  is  no  sinner  here 
who  has  not  his  representative  in  the  Bible. 


M 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 

His  Creed — Three  Cardinal  Truths 

R.  MOODY  was  the  most  faithful  advocate  of  every  truth 
presented  in  the  Word  of  God.  He  seemed  to  have  the 
most  wonderful  conception  of  all  the  great  principles  under- 
lying the  plan  of  salvation.  His  belief  in  the  atonement  was  never 
to  be  shaken,  and  his  uncompromising  position  as  touching  the 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  was  always  commented  upon  by  those 
who  heard  him  preach  for  any  length  of  time,  but  there  are  three 
special  truths  with  which  his  ministry  was  particularly  identified 
in  the  judgment  of  many  of  his  friends. 

His  View  Concerning   The  Word  of  God. 

The  first  was  his  view  concerningf  the  Word  of  God  in  itself. 
The  last  time  I  heard  him  speak  in  Philadelphia  he  said  :  "  It  is  al- 
ways the  greatest  pleasure  to  me  to  speak  on  the  subject  of  the 
Bible.  I  think  I  would  rather  preach  about  the  Word  of  God 
than  anything  else,  because  I  think  it  is  the  best  thing  in  the  world, 
and  we  cannot  possibly  overestimate  the  value  of  Bible  study. 
One  must  keep  constantly  drinking  at  this  fountain  if  he  is  to  be 
used  of  God.  A  man  stood  up  in  one  of  our  meetings  and  said  he 
hoped  for  enough  out  of  the  series  of  meetings  to  last  him  all  his 
life.  I  told  him,  that  was  perfect  nonsense  ;  he  might  as  well  try  to 
eat  enough  breakfast  at  one  time  to  last  him  his  lifetime.  These 
meetings  are  a  failure,  if  they  do  not  bring  you  in  touch  with  God's 
Word,  and  enable  you  to  drink  deeply  there."  When  I  was  with  him 
in  Pittsburg,  I  took  the  following  notes  from  his  morning  address. 
396 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  397 

"  We  do  not  ask  men  and  women  to  believe  in  the  Bible  with- 
out inquiry.  It  is  not  natural  to  man  to  accept  the  things  of  God 
without  question,  and,  if  you  are  to  be  ready  to  give  an  answer  or 
a  reason  for  your  faith  to  every  one  that  asks  you,  you  must  first 
of  all  be  a  diligent  student  of  the  Word  of  God  yourself.  Do  not 
be  a  doubter  because  you  think  it  is  intellectual.  '  Give  us  your 
covictions,'  said  a  German  writer ;  'we  have  enough  doubts  of 
our  own,'  and  if  you  are  filled  with  the  Word  of  God  there  will 
not  be  any  doubts.  But  some  one  will  say,  '  I  wish  you  would 
prove  to  me  that  the  Bible  is  true.'  My  answer  is,  the  Book  will 
prove  itself  if  you  will  let  it.  There  is  real  power  in  it.  '  For 
this  cause  also  we  thank  God  without  ceasing,  because  when  ye 
received  the  Word  of  God  which  ye  heard  of  us,  ye  received  it  not 
as  the  word  of  men,  but  as  it  is,  in  truth,  the  Word  of  God,  which 
continually  worketh  also  in  you  that  believe.' 

"  It  is  not  the  work  of  men  to  make  other  men  believe  ;  but  it 
is  the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  It  is  an  awful  responsibility  to 
have  a  Bible  and  to  neglect  its  teachings.  What  if  God  should 
withdraw  it  and  say,  I  will  not  trouble  you  with  it  longer  ? 

What  To  Do  With   Difficult  Passages 

"  But  some  one  else  asks,  'what  am  I  going  to  do  when  I  come  to 
a  thing  that  I  cannot  understand  ?'  I  answer,  '  I  thank  God  that 
there  are  heights  in  it  that  I  have  never  scaled,  and  depths  in  it 
that  I  have  never  sounded,  because  if  I  could  understand  it  all,  I 
would  know  that  a  man  not  greater  than  myself  had  written  it.  When 
it  is  beyond  me  in  places,  I  know  that  God  must  have  written  it. 
'  It  is  one  of  the  strongest  proofs  that  the  Bible  must  have  come 
from  God,  that  the  wise  men  in  all  the  ages  have  been  digging 
down  into  it,  and  never  yet  have  sounded  its  depths.' 


3r)8  ^^S  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

"  A  man  came  to  me  with  a.  difficult  passage  some  time  ago 
and  said,  '  Moody,  what  would  you  do  with  that  ? '  I  answered,  '  I 
don't  do  anything  with  it.'  *  How  do  you  understand  it?'  I  don't 
understand  it.'  'How  do  you  explain  it?'  '  I  don't  explain  it.' 
'  Well,  then,  what  do  you  do  with  it  ?  '  'I  don't  do  anything  with 
it.'  'But  you  believe  it,  don't  you?'  '  O,  yes,  I  believe  it,  but 
there  are  lots  of  things  that  I  believe  that  I  cannot  understand  and 
that  I  cannot  make  plain.  I  do  not  know  anything  about  higher 
mathematics  but  I  believe  in  them,  with  all  my  heart.  I  do 
not  understand   astronomy,  but   I   certainly  believe  in  astronomy.' 

He  was  always  most  intense  when  he  said,  "  But  somebody 
will  say,  'You  surely  do  not  believe  in  the  story  of  Jonah  and  the 
whale.  That's  entirely  out  of  date.'  I  want  to  say  most  emphatically 
that  I  do  believe  it,  and  when  men  turn  away  from  this  story,  I 
think  it  is  the  master  stroke  of  Satan  to  try  to  make  us  doubt 
the  resurrection,  for  Jesus  used  it  as  an  illustration  of  this  doctrine. 
The  book  of  Jonah  says,  'God  prepared  a  great  fish  to  swallow 
Jonah.'  Couldn't  God  make  a  fish  large  enough  to  swallow  him  ? 
If  God  can  create  a  world  out  of  nothing,  I  think  he  can  create  a 
fish  large  enough  to  swallow  a  million  men.      Don't  you  ? 

Don't  Cut   Anything    Out  of  the  Bible 

'*  Then  there  are  other  people  who  say,  '  I  believe  in  the  Bible, 
but  not  in  the  supernatural  side  of  it.'  They  go  on  reading  the 
Bible  with  a  pen-knife,  cutting  out  this  and  that  and  the  other 
thing.  Now,  if  I  have  a  right  to  cut  out  a  certain  portion  of  the 
Bible,  I  think  my  friend  has  the  same  right,  and  you  would  have  a 
queer  book,  if  everybody  cut  out  what  he  wanted  to.  Every  liar 
would  cut  out  everything  about  lying.  Every  drunkard  would  cut 
out  what  he  did  not  like.  It  is  a  most  absurd  statement  for  a  man 
to  say  he  will  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  supernatural.      If  you 


mS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 


399 


are  going  to  throw  off  the  supernatural,  you   might  as  well  burn 

your  Bibles  at  once.      For  if  you  take  the  supernatural  out  of  the 

book,  you  take  Jesus  Christ  out  of  it. 

"  Then,  I  want  to  say,  also,  that  it  is  absurd  for  any  one  to  say 

that  he  believes  in  the  New  Testament  and  not  in  the  Old.      Do  you 

not  know  that  of  the  thirty-nine  books  of  the  Old  Testament,  it  is 

recorded  that  our  Lord  made  quotations  from  over  twenty  ?     Over 

800  passages  in  the  Old  Testament  are  quoted  or  mentioned  in  the 

New.      In   Matthew  there  are  about    100  quotations  from   twenty 

books  in  the  Old  Testament.     In  Luke,  thirty-four  quotations  from 

thirteen  books,  and  in  John  eleven  quotations  from  six  books.      In 

the  four  Gospels  there  are  more  than  160  quotations  from  the  Old 

Testament. 

Christ   Preferred  to  the  Old  Testament 

"If  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  are  not  true,  do  you  think 
Christ  would  have  so  often  referred  to  them,  and  said,  '  The  Scrip- 
tures must  be  fulfilled,'  and,  if  He  could  use  the  Old  Testament, 
let  us  use  it.  May  God  deliver  us  from  the  one-sided  Christian 
who  reads  only  the  New  Testament  and  talks  against  the  Old. 

"  It  is  a  great  thing  to  study  the  Bible.  I  once  heard  Dr. 
Pierson  say  there  are  four  things  necessary  in  studying  the  Bible  : 
Admit,   submit,  commit  and  transmit. 

"  First :  Admit  its  truth. 

"  Second  :  Submit  to  its  teachings. 

*'  Third  :   Commit  it  to  memory,  and 

"  Fourth :  Transmit  to  someone  else. 

"  And,  if  we  are  to  study  the  Bible,  there  are  three  books  which 
I  think  every  Christian  ought  to  have.  First  is  a  Bible  with  large 
print ;  the  second,  a  Cruden's  Concordance  ;  the  third,  a  topical  text 
book ;  and  if  we  have  these  three  books,  anyone  of  us  might 
become  successful  students  of  this  old  book. 


^oo        ^^-^  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

"  Dr.  Pierson  also  says,  whenever  we  read  any  portion  of  the 
Bible  we  ought  to  remember  the  five  P's  : 

"  Place  where  written. 

"  Person  by  whom  written. 

*'  People  to  whom  written. 

"  Purpose  for  which  written. 

"  Period  at  which  written.  • 

"  Let  me  indicate  some  suggestions: 
1st.     Always  carry  a  Bible  v/ith  you. 
2nd.      Mark  it. 

3rd.     Set  apart  a  portion  of  each  day  to  study  it. 
4th.     Ask  God  to  open  your  eyes  to  its  truth. 

5th.      Believe    that    God    wrote    this   word    to    you,    and    act    ac- 
cordingly. 
6th,     Commit  some  portion  of  the  Bible  to  memory  each  day. 
7th.      Do  not  be  satisfied  with  simply  reading  a  chapter  daily;  study 
the  meaning  of  at  least  one  verse  in  it. 

"  But  remember  this,  that  the  Bible  is  every  whit  inspired.  God 
has  said  it,  and  God  always  speaks  the  truth.  '  Heaven  and  earth 
shall  pass  away,  but  My  Word  shall  not  pass  away.' " 

The  Second  Coming  of  Christ 

The  second  great  cardinal  truth  with  which  Mr.  Moody  was 
so  closely  identified  in  his  world-wide  ministry  was  the  second 
coming  of  Christ.  He  firmly  believed  that  Christ  was  coming 
before  the  Millennium,  and  not  after  it.  He  was  never  more  elo- 
quent than  when  he  was  speaking  of  prophecy  and  its  fulfillment. 
"Some  people  tell  us,"  he  said,  "that  it  is  useless  to  try  to  understand 
prophecy.  '  The  Church  is  not  agreed  about  it ;  better  let  it  alone, 
and  deal  only  with  those  things  that  have  been  fulfilled.'  Paul  did 
not  say  that.       He  said,    'All   Scripture   is  profitable.'      If  these 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  401 

people  are  right,  he  ought  to  have  said,  '  Some  Scripture  is  profit- 
able, but  you  cannot  understand  the  prophecies,  so  better  let  them 
alone.'  '  And  you  can't  understand  about  this  second  coming,' 
what  nonsense  this  is!  If  God  did  not  mean  to  have  us  study  the 
prophecies,  He  would  not  have  put  them  in  the  Bible.  Some  of  them 
have  been  fulfilled.  Some  are  being  fulfilled,  and  all  shall  be.  The 
three  great  comings  are  foretold  in  the  Word  of  God.  First,  that 
Christ  should  come  ;  that  has  been  fulfilled.  Second,  that  the  Holy 
Ghost  should  come,  and  that  has  been  fulfilled.  Third,  that  our 
Lord  should  return  from  Heaven,  and  for  this  we  are  told  to  watch 
and  wait. 

"  Whoever  neglects  this  truth  has  only  a  mutilated  Gospel,  for 
the  Bible  deals  not  only  with  the  death  and  sufferings  of  Christ, 
but  also  of  his  return  to  reign  in  honor  and  glory.  His  second 
coming  is  mentioned  and  referred  to  over  three  hundred  times,  and 
yet  I  was  in  the  Church  fifteen  or  sixteen  years  before  I  ever  heard 
a  sermon  on  it.  Every  church  makes  much  of  baptism,  but  in  all 
of  Paul's  epistles  baptism  is  spoken  of  only  thirteen  times  ;  the 
return  of  the  Lord  fifty  times. 

"We  are  also  told  in  the  Scriptures  just  how  He  is  to  come.  The 
angel  said,  in  like  manner  as  you  have  seen  him  go.  We  know 
that  He  went  up  with  His  flesh  and  bones,  and  we  certainly  know 
that  when  He  comes  back  again,  He  shall  come  just  as  He  went 
away  from  His  disciples  ;  but  it  is  also  true  that  of  that  day  and 
hour  no  man  knoweth,  but  it  is  well  for  us  that  we  do  not  know.  If 
Christ  had  said,  '  I  will  not  come  back  for  eighteen  hundred  years,' 
none  of  His  disciples  would  have  begun  to  watch  for  Him  until 
the  time  was  near.  The  last  chapter  of  John  gives  us  a  text 
which  seems  to  settle  the  whole  matter.  Peter  asks  the  question 
about  John  : '  Lord,  what  shall  this  man  do  ? '  Jesus  said  unto  him, 
*  If  I  will  that  he  tarry  till  I  come,  what  is  that  to  thee  ?     Follow 


4oa  HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

thou  me.'  Then  this  saying- went  abroad  among  the  brethren  that 
that  disciple  should  not  die.  They  certainly  did  not  think  that  the 
coming  of  the  Lord  meant  death.  There  was  a  great  difference 
between  these  two  things  in  their  minds,  and  when  any  one  says 
that  the  coming  of  Christ  means  the  death  of  the  Christian,  he  has 
only  to  put  this  thought  into  the  Bible  as  he  reads,  to  see  how  ridicu- 
lous it  is.  Look  at  that  account  of  the  last  hour  of  Christ  with 
His  disciples.  What  does  He  say  to  them  ?  '  If  I  go  away  I  will 
send  death  for  you  to  bring  you  to  me,  or  that  I  will  send  an  angel 
after  you  ? '  Not  at  all.  He  says,  '  /  will  come  again  and 
receive  you  unto  myself.' 

Will  the  World  Grow   Better  or  Worse  ? 

"  Some  people  shake  their  heads  and  say  that  this  thought  is 
too  deep  for  the  most  of  us  ;  such  things  ought  not  to  be  told  to 
young  converts.  Paul  wrote  these  things  to  young  converts 
amone  the  Thessalonians,  and  I  believe  there  is  no  Christian 
to-day,  whether  he  be  young  or  old,  but  what  he  can  get  a  great 
inspiration  out  of  this  truth.  At  one  time  I  thought  the  world  would 
grow  better  and  better  until  Christ  could  stay  away  no  longer,  but 
in  studying  the  Bible,  I  do  not  find  any  place  where  God  says  so. 
I  find  that  the  world  is  to  grow  worse  and  worse,  then,  after  a 
while,  Christ  is  to  come  in  power  and  glory.  Some  people  think 
this  is  a  new  and  strange  doctrine,  but  1  say  that  it  is  not.  Many 
of  the  most  spiritual  men  in  the  world  are  firm  in  this  faith. 
Spurgeon  preached  it,  and  I  know  of  no  reason  why  Christ  might 
not  come  before  I  finish  this  sermon. 

"There  is  another  thought  I  want  to  bring  to  your  attention, 
and  that  is,  that  Christ  will  bring  our  friends  with  Him  when  He 
comes;  all  who  have  died  in  the  Lord  are  to  be  with  Him  when 
He  descends  from  His  Father's  throne  into  the  air.     '  Behold,  I 


mS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  403 

come  quickly,'  said  Christ  to  John.  Three  times  it  is  repeated  in 
the  last  chapter  of  the  Bible,  and  almost  the  closing  words  of  the 
Bible  are  the  prayer,  '  Even  so,  come,  Lord  Jesus.' 

"  The  world  waited  for  the  first  coming  four  thousand  years, 
and  then  He  came.  He  was  here  only  thirty-three  years  and  went 
away,  when  He  left  us  a  promise  that  He  would  come  again,  and, 
as  the  world  watched  for  His  first  coming,  so  we  wait  for  His  ap- 
pearing the  second  time  unto  salvation.  But  you  also  read,  '  for 
in  such  an  hour  as  we  think  not,  the  Son  of  Man  cometh.' " 

The  Work  of  the   Holy  Ghost. 

The  third  great  truth  for  which  Mr,  Moody  stood,  and  of 
which  his  own  great  life  was  a  powerful  illustration  was  the  truth 
touching  the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

"  When  I  was  first  converted,  I  spoke  in  a  Sabbath  school,  and 
there  seemed  to  be  a  great  deal  of  interest,  and  quite  a  number 
rose  for  prayer,  and  I  remember  I  went  out  quite  rejoiced  ;  but  an 
old  man  followed  me  out — I  have  never  seen  him  since.  I  never 
had  seen  him  before,  and  don't  even  know  his  name — but  he 
caught  hold  of  my  hand  and  gave  me  a  little  bit  of  advice.  I 
didn't  know  what  he  meant  at  the  time,  but  he  said,  '  Young  man, 
when  you  speak  again,  honor  the  Holy  Ghost.  '  I  was  hasten- 
ing off  to  another  church  to  speak,  and  all  the  way  over,  it  kept 
ringing  in  my  ears,  '  Honor  the  Holy  Ghost,'  and  I  said  to  myself, 
'  I  wonder  what  the  old  man  means.'  I  have  found  out  since  what 
he  meant,  and  I  think  that  all  that  have  been  to  work  in  the  vine- 
yard of  the  Lord  have  learned  that  lesson,  that  if  we  honor  Him 
in  our  efforts  to  do  good.  He  will  honor  us  and  work  through  us  ; 
but  if  we  don't  honor  Him,  we  will  surely  break  down. 

"  The  only  work  that  is  going  to  stand  to  eternity  is  the  work 

done  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  not  by  any  one  of  us.     We  may  be  used 

22 


404  J^JS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

as  His  instruments,  but  the  work  t,hat  will  stand  to  eternity  is  that 
done  by  the  Holy  Ghost;  and  every  conversion  in  these  meetings, 
that  is  not  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  will  not  stand.  They 
may  be  impressions  that  will  last  for  a  few  weeks  or  months,  but  then 
they  will  pass  away  like  the  morning  cloud  ;  and  I  firmly  believe 
that  if  a  man  or  woman  be  not  converted  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  we 
will  not  see  them  in  Heaven. 

The   Holy  Ghost  a  Person 

"  I  really  believe  I  was  a  Christian  ten  years  before  I 
believed  it.  I  went  into  a  church  once  and  heard  an  old 
minister  say  that  the  Holy  Ghost  was  a  person.  I  thought 
the  old  man  was  wrong,  and  could  not  believe  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  was  a  person.  I  did  not  know  my  Bible  then  as  well 
as  I  do  now,  but  I  went  home  and  got  my  Bible,  and  went  to  work 
to  study  it  out ;  and  I  have  been  thoroughly  convinced  ever  since 
that  the  Holy  Ghost  is  a  person  as  much  as  God  the  Father  is,  and 
as  much  as  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  is.  Some  may  say  that  it  is  a  mys- 
tery, and  there  are  a  good  many  things  that  are  mysterious  on  their 
face.  Now  turn  to  the  14th  chapter  of  John,  i6th  and  17th 
verses  :  '  And  I  will  pray  the  Father,  and  He  shall  give  you  another 
Comforter,  that  He  may  abide  with  you  forever.  Even  the  Spirit 
of  Truth,  whom  the  world  cannot  receive  because  it  seeth  Him  not, 
neither  knoweth  Him  ;  but  ye  know  Him,  for  He  dwelleth  with 
you,  and  shall  be  in  you.' 

Now,  if  the  Holy  Ghost  were  not  a  person,  Christ  would  not 
have  said  '  Who.'  To  be  sure  He  is  a  spirit,  but  at  the  same 
time  He  is  a  person,  the  same  as  God  the  Father  is.  God  is  a 
spirit,  and  yet  He  is  a  person.  Three  times  in  this  last  verse  it 
says  '  Him '  and  once  '  Who.'  Then  in  the  26th  verse  of  the 
same   chapter:    'But   the    Comforter,   which    is  the    Holy    Ghost, 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  405 

whom  the  Father  will  send  in  my  name,  He  shall  teach  you  all 
things,  and  bring  all  things  to  your  remembrance  whatsoever  I  have 
said  unto  you.'  Then  there  are  a  good  many  other  verses,  and  I 
want  to  call  your  attention  to  one  or  two  more,  just  to  show  this 
fact,  that  He  is  a  person.  Whenever  Christ  spoke  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  He  always  spoke  of  Him  as  'He'  or  'Him,'  and  we 
won't  honor  the  Holy  Ghost  unless  we  make  Him  a  person,  and  one 
of  the  persons  of  the  Trinity — the  Father,  Son  and  Holy  Ghost. 

The  Real  Fruit  is  Love. 

"  It  is  the  work  of  the  Holy  Ghost  to  impart  love.  Just  turn 
to  Romans  v.  5  :  '  And  hope  maketh  not  ashamed  ;  because  the 
love  of  God  is  shed  abroad  in  our  hearts  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  which 
is  given  unto  us.'  The  real  fruit  that  we  look  for  in  a  young 
convert  is  love  ,  and  I  think  it  is  one  of  the  strongest  proofs  that 
this  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  is  divine,  that  it  is  the  same  all  the 
world  over.  Even  in  the  heart  of  China  you  will  find,  if  a  man  is 
converted,  he  will  love  his  enemies.  The  love  of  God  is  in  that 
man's  heart.  What  do  we  as  Christians  feel  and  want  to-day  ? 
What  is  the  great  lack  of  the  Church  ?  Why  are  so  many  com- 
plaining about  the  coldness  of  the  Church  ?  It  is  because  we  have 
not  got  this  love.  If  the  Holy  Ghost  is  a  power  in  the  Church,  shed- 
ding abroad  love  in  our  hearts,  there  won't  be  any  complaint. 

"  A  great  many  Christians  are  like  Lazarus  when  he  came 
forth — he  was  bound  hand  and  foot ;  but  Christ  said,  '  Loose  him 
and  let  him  go.'  And  so  Christians  want  to  feel  that  liberty  they 
should  feel  when  Christ  calls  them  to  be  His  disciples.  Where  the 
Spirit  of  the  Lord  is,  there  is  liberty.  Many  think  to  themselves 
before  they  get  up  to  speak  :  '  Now,  what  will  Mrs.  B.  say  when  I 
get  up,  if  I  don't  talk  as  well  as  the  minister  ?'    and   '  Oh,  if  I  could 


4o6  ^^S  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

talk  as  well  as  Brother  A.,  wouldn^t  I  give  my  testimony  quickly  I 
But  I  haven't  any  eloquence,  and  cannot  speak  like  an  orator.' 

"  Don't  you  know,  my  friend,  it  is  not  the  most  fluent  man  that 
has  the  greatest  effect  with  a  jury  ?  It  is  the  man  who  tells  the 
truth.  And  in  speaking  of  your  experience,  God  will  help  you  if 
you  trust  in  Him,  and  you  will  find  after  a  simple  trial  that  you 
have  perfect  liberty.  The  trouble  is  we  have  a  great  many  Chris- 
tians who  have  only  got  as  far  as  the  3d  chapter  of  John,  and  so 
far  as  liberty  to  come  out  and  speak  up  for  God  is  concerned,  they 
don't  know  anything  about  it.  We  want  this  spirit  of  liberty  so  as 
to  be  qualified  for  God's  work.  A  friend  of  mine  told  me  once 
that  when  he  went  to  a  boarding-house  he  could  always  tell  who 
the  boarders  were,  for  they  never  alluded  to  family  matters,  but  sat 
down  to  the  table  and  talked  of  outside  matters ;  but  when  the  son 
came  in,  he  would  go  into  the  sitting-room  to  see  if  there  were  any 
letters,  and  inquire  after  the  family,  and  show  in  many  ways  his 
interest  in  the  household.  It  doesn't  take  five  minutes  to  tell  that 
he  is  not  a  boarder,  and  that  the  others  are.  And  so  it  is  with  the 
Church  of  God.  You  see  these  boarders  in  church  every  Sunday 
morning,  but  they  don't  take  any  interest.  They  come  to  criticise, 
and  that  is  about  all  that  constitutes  a  Christian  nowadays.  They 
are  boarders  in  the  House  of  God,  and  we  have  got  too  many 
boarders.     What  we  want  is  liberty. 

How  THE  Judge  Became  a  Working  Christian. 

"  A  friend  of  mine  asked  a  judge  in  his  church  to  go  out  to  a 
schoolhouse  in  the  country  with  him  one  day,  where  he  was  going 
to  preach.  He  said  to  the  judge  that  he  would  like  to  have  him 
go,  and  the  judge  said  he  would  like  to  go  along.  He  told  the 
judge  he  would  like  to  have  him  speak  to  the  people.  The  judge 
said,    'Oh,   I    could    not   do   that.'      'Why   can't    you?      You   can 


CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH,  EAST  NORTHFIELD,  which  Mr.   Moody  attended  and  where  the 

funeral  services  were  held. 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  409 

speak  in  your  court  well  enough  without  any  trouble.  Why  cannot 
you  speak  here  ?  Suppose  you  just  try  it  ?'  When  they  got  out 
there,  the  judge  refused  to  do  so,  but  the  minister  said,  '  I  want  to 
put  the  judge  into  the  witness  box  and  question  him.'  And  the 
judge  got  his  lips  open  at  last,  and  told  how  he  was  converted,  and 
how  the  Spirit  of  God  came  down  upon  him.  And  there  was  a 
mighty  power  in  what  he  said,  and  the  result  was  that  many  were 
converted,  and  the  judge  has  been  a  working  Christian  ever  since. 
I  think  there  are  hundreds  bound,  as  he  was,  by  station. 

"A  man  who  had  been  a  professing  Christian  for  three  years  I 
met  at  a  meeting,  and  I  knew  he  had  been  a  professing  Christian,  and 
I  supposed,  of  course,  he  had  prayed  in  public.  I  noticed  that  he 
hesitated  when  I  asked  him,  but  he  rose,  and  as  soon  as  he  opened 
his  lips,  the  words  came  easily.  I  heard  him  tell  a  friend  afterward 
that  that  night  he  felt  as  if  he  had  been  converted  a  second  time. 

The  Holy  Ghost  Testifies  of  Christ. 

"  I  believe  the  world  would  have  forgotten  Christ's  death  as 
soon  as  they  forgot  His  birth,  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  Holy 
Ghost,  It  had  only  been  thirty  years  since  His  birth,  and  all  those 
wonderful  scenes  had  happened  in  Bethlehem  and  it  was  well 
known  in  Jerusalem  ;  yet,  it  seems  to  have  been  forgotten  until 
Christ  came.  And  they  would  have  forgotten  His  death  if  it  had 
not  been  for  the  Holy  Ghost.  He  came  to  testify  for  Jesus  Christ 
that  He  had  risen.  He  saw  Him  in  Heaven,  and  He  came  to  tell 
us  that  He  was  there  at  the  right  hand  of  God.  He  convinced 
men  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  three  thousand  of  them.  •  He  does 
not  talk  of  Himself,  but  of  Christ.  In  the  15th  chapter  of  John, 
the  26th  verse,  it  says,  '  But  when  the  Comforter  is  come,  whom  I 
will  send  unto  you  from  the  Father,  even  the  Spirit  of  Truth, 
which  proceedeth  from  the  Father,  He  shall  testify  of  me.' 


4  TO  HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

"A  man  camfe  to  me  the  other  day  and  said  he  was  going  where 
my  wife  and  family  are,  and  wanted  to  know  if  I  had  any  message 
to  send.  Well,  I  sent  them  a  message  ;  but  suppose  when  that 
man  went  down  there,  that  he  should  go  and  see  my  wife  and 
should  begin  to  talk  about  himself,  and  not  say  a  word  about  me. 
That  would  not  cheer  their  hearts  ;  they  would  want  to  hear  about 
me.  That  would  make  their  hearts  warm.  The  Holy  Ghost 
teaches  us  this  lesson  of  self-forgetfulness.  Every  one  of  us  Chris- 
tians wants  more  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Let  us  all  give  ourselves  up 
to  the  Influence  of  His  Spirit,  who  will  lead  us  on  to  liberty  and  life 
and  peace  and  joy. 

Three  Classes  of  Christians. 

"It  seems  to  me  that  we  have  grot  about  three  classes  of  Chris- 
tians.  The  first  class  in  the  3d  chapter  of  John,  were  those  who 
had  got  to  Calvary  and  there  got  life.  They  believed  on  the  Son 
and  were  saved,  and  there  they  rested  satisfied.  They  did  not 
seek  anything  higher.  Then,  in  the  4th  chapter  of  John,  we  come 
to  a  better  class  of  Christians.  There  it  was  a  well  of  living 
water  bubbling  up.  There  are  a  few  of  these,  but  they  are  not 
a  hundredth  part  of  the  first  class.  But  the  best  class  is  in  the  7th 
chapter  of  John,  '  Out  of  his  belly  shall  flow  rivers  of  living  water.' 
That  is  the  kind  of  Christian  we  ought  to  be. 

"  When  I  was  a  boy,  I  used  to  have  to  pump  water  for  the 
cattle.  Ah,  how  many  times  I  have  pumped  with  that  old  right 
hand  until  it  ached  !  and  how  many  times  I  used  to  pump  when  I 
could  not  get  any  water,  and  I  was  taught  that  when  the  pump  was 
dry  I  must  pour  a  pail  of  water  down  the  pump,  and  then  I  could 
get  the  water  up.  And  that  is  what  Christians  want — a  well  of 
living  water.  We  will  have  plenty  of  grace  to  spare  ;  all  we  need 
ourselves  and  plenty  for  others.    We  have  got  into  the  way  now  of 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  411 

digging  artesian  wells  better.  They  don't  pump  now  to  get  the 
water,  but  when  they  dig  the  well  they  cut  down  through  the 
gravel  and  through  the  clay,  perhaps  one  thousand  or  two  thousand 
feet,  not  stopping  when  they  can  pump  the  water  up,  but  they  cut 
to  a  lower  stratum,  and  the  water  flows  up  abundantly  of  itself.  And 
so  we  ought,  every  one  of  us  to  be  like  artesian  wells.  God  has  got 
grace  enough  for  every  one  of  us,  and  if  we  were  only  full  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  what  power  we  would  have  !  The  influence  of  these 
meetings  would  be  felt  through  the  whole  country.  A  learned  doctor 
said  once,  speaking  of  Christ's  holiness,  'You  fill  a  tumbler  of 
water  to  the  brim  and  then  just  touch  it,  and  the  water  flows  out ; 
and  so  Christ  was  so  full  of  truth  that  when  the  woman  touched 
Him,  virtue  flowed  out  and  healed  her.'  Every  one  of  us  should 
be  as  full  of  the  Holy  Ghost  as  this,  and  then  men  will  see  that  we 
have  an  unseen  power.  We  must  not  be  satisfied  with  just  having 
life,  but  we  want  this  power.  How  many  times  we  have  preached 
and  taught,  and  it  has  been  like  the  wind  !  And  why  ?  Because  our 
hearts  were  not  full,  and  we  did  not  have  that  anointing. 

We  Have  to  be  Very   Humble. 

"  Some  one  asked  a  minister,  if  he  had  ever  received  a  second 
blessing  since  he  was  converted.  '  What  do  you  mean  ?'  was  his  reply, 
'  I  have  received  ten  thousand  since  the  first.'  A  great  many 
think  because  they  have  been  filled  once,  they  are  going  to  be  full 
for  all  time  after  ;  but  O,  my  friends,  we  are  leaky  vessels,  and 
have  to  be  kept  right  under  the  fountain  all  the  time  in  order  to 
keep  full.  If  we  are  goings  to  be  used  by  God  we  have  to  be  very 
humble.  A  man  that  lives  close  to  God  will  be  the  humblest  of 
men.  I  heard  a  man  say  that  God  always  chooses  the  vessel  that 
is  close  at  hand.  Let  us  keep  near  Him.  But  we  will  have  to 
keep  down  in  the  dust ;  God  won't  choose  ^  man  that  is  conceited. 


412  HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS 

The  moment  we  lift  up  our  head  and  think  we  are  something  and 
somebody,  He  lays  us  aside.  If  We  want  this  power,  we  have  to 
give  God  all  the  glory.  I  believe  the  reason  we  do  not  get  this 
power  more  than  we  do,  is  because  we  do  not  know  how  to  use  it. 
We  would  be  taking  all  the  credit  to  ourselves  and  saying,  '  Don't 
I  do  a  great  work  ? '  and  begin  and  boast  about  it.  There  are 
hundreds  and  thousands  I  believe  that  God  would  take  up  and  use 
and  give  us  a  great  baptism  if  we  would  only  give  Him  the  glory. 
We  have  not  learned  the  lesson  of  humility  yet,  that  we  are  nothing 
and  God  is  everything." 

A  Blessed  Experience. 

In  the  city  of  Glasgow,  some  years  ago,  Mr.  Moody  related  an 
incident  which  is  given  here  in  his  own  words,  from  which  we  get 
a  glimpse  of  his  superior  life,  and  from  which  we  are  led  to  believe 
that  in  this,  as  in  everything  else,  he  was  a  great  illustration  of  the 
truths  he  taught  to  others  : 

"  I  can  myself  go  ba^k  almost  twelve  years  and  remember  two 
holy  women  who  used  to  come  to  my  meetings.  It  was  delightful 
to  see  them  there,  for  when  I  began  to  preach,  I  could  tell  by  the 
expression  of  their  faces  they  were  praying  for  me.  At  the  close 
of  the  Sabbath  evening  services  they  would  say  to  me,  '  We  have 
been  praying  for  you.'  I  said,  '  Why  don't  you  pray  for  the  peo- 
ple ? '  They  answered,  'You  need  power,'  'I  need  power,'  I 
said  to  myself ;  *  why,  I  thought  I  had  power.'  I  had  a  large  Sab- 
bath school  and  the  largest  congregation  in  Chicago.  There  were 
some  conversions  at  the  time,  and  I  was  in  a  sense  satisfied.  But 
right  along  these  two  godly  women  kept  praying  for  me,  and  their 
earnest  talk  about  '  the  anointing  for  special  service  '  set  me  think- 
ing. I  asked  them  to  come  and  talk  with  me,  and  we  got  down  on 
our  knees.      They  poured  out  their  hearts,  that  I  might  receive  the 


HIS  CREED— THREE  CARDINAL  TRUTHS  413 

anointing  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  And  there  came  a  great  hunger 
into  my  soul.  I  knew  not  what  it  was.  I  began  to  cry  as  I  never 
did  before.  The  hunger  increased.  I  really  felt  that  I  did  not  want  to 
live  any  longer  if  I  could  not  have  this  power  for  service.  I  kept  on 
crying  all  the  time  that  God  would  fill  me  with  His  Spirit.  Well, 
one  day,  in  the  city  of  New  York — O,  what  a  day  !  I  cannot 
describe  it ;  I  seldom  refer  to  it  ;  it  is  almost  too  sacred  an  experi- 
ence to  me.  Paul  had  an  experience  of  which  he  never  spoke  for 
fourteen  years.  I  can  only  say,  God  revealed  himself  to  me,  and  I 
had  such  an  experience  of  His  love  that  I  had  to  ask  Him  to  stay 
His  hand. 

"I  went  to  preaching  again.  The  sermons  were  not  different; 
I  did  not  present  any  new  truths,  and  yet  hundreds  were  converted. 
I  would  not  be  placed  back  where  I  was  before  that  blessed  experi- 
ence if  you  would  give  me  all  Glasgow.  It  is  a  sad  day  when  the 
convert  goes  into  the  church,  and  that  is  the  last  you  hear  of  him. 
If,  however,  you  want  this  power  for  some  selfish  end,  as  for  exam- 
ple, to  gratify  your  ambition,  you  will  not  get  it.  '  No  flesh,'  says 
God,  '  shall  glory  in  my  presence.'  May  he  empty  us  of  self  and 
fill  us  with  His  presence." 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 

The   Funeral 

IT  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  a  more  representative  company 
of  Christian  workers  than  that  which  assembled  about  the 
casket  holding  all  that  was  mortal  of  him  who  was  said  by- 
many  to  have  been  the  most  remarkable  man  of  this  generation. 
The  friends  had  been  gathering  for  two  days.  The  Holiday  joys 
in  their  own  homes  and  the  natural  desire  that  every  man  has  to 
be  with  his  own  family  at  such  a  season  of  the  year  could  not  keep 
them  from  paying  this  last  tribute  to  the  man  who  had  been  a 
friend,  indeed  more  than  a  friend  to  every  one  of  them  ;  for,  if  ever 
any  one  came  to  know  D.  L.  Moody  well,  he  loved  him.  Paul 
once  wrote  in  his  Epistle  to  the  Philippians,  "  I  thank  my  God 
for  every  remembrance  of  you,"  and  all  who  came  close  to  this 
man  of  God  could  write  the  same  concerning  him. 

So  Like  Mr.   Moody   Himself 

The  Hotel  Northfield  had  been  opened  by  the  family  of  Mr. 
Moody  for  the  accommodation  of  those  who  would  come  to  the 
services,  and  Mr.  Ambert  G.  Moody,  his  nephew,  who  has  been  so 
closely  associated  with  Mr.  Moody's  Northfield  work,  was  there  to 
receive  the  coming  friends  and  bid  them  welcome,  just  as  his  dis- 
tinguished uncle  would  have  had  it  done.  It  was  so  like  Mr. 
Moody  himself  to  care  for  the  comfort  of  these  sad-hearted  pil- 
grims. I  found  myself,  as  I  was  planning  for  the  journey  and  had 
received  notification  that  the  Northfield  was  opened  for  us,  saying, 
414 


THE  FUNERAL  415 

"  Well,  that  is  like  him  in  all  his  careful  thought  for  others.  I 
suppose  that  he  has  ordered  that  the  house  be  thrown  open,  and 
that  it  be  made  comfortable  for  all  who  would  accept  the  invitation 
to  come,"  and  then  it  came  to  me  like  a  shock  that  D.  L.  Moody  was 
dead,  and  could  care  for  us  no  more  except  as  the  influence  of  his 
sainted  memory  would  guide  and  control  for  many  a  long  day. 
Many  of  his  co-laborers  were  in  Northfield  the  evening  of  Christ- 
mas Day,  and  the  life  of  this  dear  friend  was  talked  over ;  always 
with  love,  and  frequently  with  tears  blinding  the  eyes  of  those 
who  would  attempt  to  speak.  Those  who  were  qualified  to  testify 
told  of  his  last  days  and  the  closing  hours  of  his  life.  One  said, 
**  It  was  just  such  an  experience  as  we  would  have  supposed  he 
mig-ht  have.     It  was  glorious." 

His   Last   Moments  and  His  Will 

Another  told  how  just  before  the  last  he  said,  "  Can't  a 
man  die  sitting  up  as  well  as  lying  down,"  and  when  the  doctor 
said  yes,  they  took  him  up  and  let  him  rest  for  a  moment 
or  two  in  his  chair,  but  it  was  only  for  a  little  while,  and  then 
they  put  him  back  again  in  his  bed.  It  was  the  last  time  he 
was  to  rise,  and  he  who  told  it  said  with  a  sob,  "  I  cannot  bring 
myself  to  realize  that  he  has  gone  from  us."  Another  told  how, 
when  he  was  aroused  from  his  stupor  and  saw  all  his  loved  ones 
about  him,  he  said  in  his  old  way,  so  characteristic  of  himself, 
"What's  going  on  here,"  and  when  they  told  him  that  he  had  been 
worse  for  a  little  time,  and  that  they  had  come  to  be  with  him,  he 
closed  his  eyes  and  seemed  to  fall  asleep  again. 

Still  another  told  of  the  will  he  made,  unlike  any  other  will 
that  any  man  had  ever  made  ;  when  he  gave  the  care  of  Mt.  Hermon 
to  his  son,  William  R.  Moody ;  the  Northfield  Young  Ladies' 
School  to  the  care  of  Paul,  his  son,  a  junior  in  Yale ;  the  special 


4i6  THE  FUNERAL 

oversight  of  the  Bible  Institute  to  Mrs.  Fitt  and  her  husband,  Mr. 
A.  P.  Fitt,  the  latter  having  for  years  been  Mr.  Moody's  closest 
and  most  confidential  helper,  particularly  in  the  Bible  Institute  in 
Chicago  and  the  Colportage  Library  work.  The  Northfield 
Training  School  was  to  be  the  care  of  Mr.  Ambert  G.  Moody,  his 
nephew.  And  when  something  was  said  about  Mrs.  Moody,  he 
had  said  she  was  the  mother  of  them  all,  and  they  must  all  care  for 
her.  An  old  friend  gave  the  account  of  his  words  to  his  boys 
when  he  said,  "  I  have  always  been  an  ambitious  man,  not  ambi- 
tious to  lay  up  money,  but  ambitious  to  leave  you  all  work  to  be 
done,    which     is   the    greatest    heritage     one   can    leave   to   his 

children.'' 

A  Triumphant  Passing  Away 

Still  another  gave  the  picture  of  his  last  hours.  No  more 
memorable  sentences  on  one's  deathbed  have  ever  been  spoken. 
It  was  just  such  a  triumphant  passing  away  as  his  dear  friends  would 
have  wished.  Where  have  you  ever  read  better  sayings  than 
these : 

"  Is  this  dying  ?     Why  this  is  bliss. 

**  There  is  no  valley. 

"  I  have  been  within  the  gates. 

"Earth  is  receding;  Heaven  is  opening;  God  is  calling;  I 
must  go." 

And  when  he  went  away  from  them  for  a  little  time  and  came 
back,  he  said  that  he  had  seen  his  loved  ones  in  Heaven,  giving 
their  names,  and  when  it  was  sugrcrested  that  he  had  been  dream- 
ing,  he  assured  them  it  was  not  so,  but  that  he  had  actually 
been  within  the  gates  of  Heaven.  Thus  his  noble  life  went  out, 
but  he  being  dead  yet  speaketh,  and  is  continuing  to  speak,  and 
tens  of  thousands  rise  up  to  call  him  blessed.  Such  intimate  asso- 
ciates as  Mr.  Ira  D.  Sankey,  Mr.  George  C.  Stebbins,  Rev.  George 


H 

> 
H 

2 

2 
o 
o 

d 
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*.n 


THE  FUNERAL  419 

C.  Needham,  Prof.  W.  W.  White,  Mr.  William  Phillips  Hail,  Mr. 
John  R.  Mott,  Mr.  Richard  C.  Morse,  Rev.  George  A.  Hall,  and 
many  others  talked  until  the  evening  was  gone,  and  then  retired 
each  to  feel  that  his  was  a  personal  bereavement,  because  D.  L. 
Moody  was  dead. 

Wanted  to  see  His  Face  Once  More 

Special  trains  were  run  from  the  surrounding  New  England 
towns,  and  they  were  filled  with  people  who  wanted  to  see  his  face 
once  more.  Farmers  drove  from  distances  of  twenty  miles  away 
that  they  might  pay  respect  to  the  memory  of  him  in  whom  they 
all  believed.  The  students  were  many  of  them  away  for  their 
Christmas  vacations,  but  there  was  a  sufficient  number  present  to 
bear  his  body  from  the  house,  which  had  become  so  much  a  part  of 
himself,  to  the  church  in  which  he  was  so  deeply  interested. 

At  last  the  day  of  the  funeral  came.  It  was  a  sad  company  of 
friends  that  met  in  the  Grand  Central  Station  in  New  York  City 
the  morning  of  the  funeral.  There  was  the  Hon.  John  Wanama- 
ker,  who  had  been  in  close  fellowship  with  him  for  years ;  the  Rev. 
A.  C.  Dixon,  D.D.,  who  had  been  as  near  to  him  in  Christian  work 
as  any  man  in  the  country,  who  showed  by  every  expression  of  his 
face  that  he  was  in  sorrow,  yet  "  not  as  others  who  have  no  hope  ;  " 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Janeway,  of  New  Brunswick,  New  Jersey,  devoted 
friends  of  the  great  Evangelist  for  years,  and  intimately  and  offi- 
cially connected  with  the  Northfield  work.  There  were  very  many 
others,  but  notably,  there  was  the  veteran  evangelist,  the  Rev.  Dr. 
E.  P.  Hammond,  who  had  known  Mr.  Moody  as  longasany  one  in 
the  company.  It  was  a  sad  group  of  people  that  journeyed  toward 
the  little  town  where  the  devoted  friend  was  lying  dead.  Many  of 
them  had  not  seen  Northfield  in  winter.  They  had  visited  it  when 
the  trees  were  in  full  foliage,  when  the  grass  was  green  on  the  hill- 


420  THE  FUNERAL 

sides,  and  when  the  birds  sang  their  joyous  welcome,  but  at  this 
visit  all  nature  seemed  in  sympathy  with  the  many  who  sorrowed 
because  their  friend  was  not,  but  rejoiced  as  well  because  God  had 
taken  him,  and  because  of  the  abundant  entrance  given  him  into 
His  presence. 

At  last  the  church  was  reached.  Special  seats  were  reserved 
for  the  late  coming  friends,  and  the  most  memorable  funeral  service 
in  all  the  experience  of  the  most  of  those  who  knew  him  began. 

During  the   morning  Mr.  Moody's  family  had  been  \vith  the 

body,  which  had  been  lying  in  the  death-chamber  since  the  time  of 

death.      But  soon  after  ten  o'clock  the  body  was  laid  in  the  heavy 

broadcloth  casket  and  removed   to  the  parlor  of  the  home,  where  a 

simple  service   of  prayer   was   conducted  by  Mr.    Moody's   pastor, 

the    Rev.  C.    I.    Scofield,   assisted   by    the   Rev.    R.    A.  Torrey,   of 

Chicago. 

Funeral  Services  at  The  Church 

At  the  close  of  this  service  the  casket  was  placed  on  a  massive 
bier,  and  thirty-two  Mt.  Hermon  students  bore  it  to  the  Congrega- 
tional Church,  where  it  was  to  lie  in  state.  During  the  next  three 
hours  fully  three  thousand  persons  looked  for  the  last  time  at  the 
face  of  the  great,  good  man.  The  casket  was  placed  directly  in 
front  of  the  altar,  and  around  it  were  banked  many  floral  tributes. 

The  gathering  at  the  church  for  the  funeral  service  at  2:30  was 
notable.  Men  from  all  walks  of  life — clergymen,  business  men, 
tillers  of  the  soil — came  side  by  side  to  pay  a  last  tribute.  The 
services  were  as  simple  and  as  impressive  as  if  he  himself  had  planned 
them.    The  voice  of  the  loved  one  was  still,  but  his  presence  was  felt. 

The  hymn,  "  A  Little  While  and  He  Shall  Come,"  was  followed 
by  the  Rev.  C.  I.  Scoheld's  prayer.  The  Rev.  A.  T.  Pierson  read 
the  Scripture  lesson  from  H  Corinthians,  iv.  ii.     This  was  followed 


THE  FUNERAL  421 

by  a  prayer  by  Rev.  George  C.  Needham,  after  which  the  congre- 
g-ation  sang  "  Emmanuel's  Land,"  the  music  being  directed  by  Mr. 
A.  B.  PhiUips,  Professor  of  Music  in  the  Northfield  Institute. 

The  Rev.  Dr.  Scofield  then  pronounced   the  eulogy,  saying  : 

** '  We  know,'  '  We  are  always  confident,'  That  is  the  Chris- 
tian attitude  toward  the  mystery  of  death.  '  We  know,'  so  far  as 
the  present  body  is  concerned,  that  it  is  a  tent  in  which  we  dwell. 
It  is  a  convenience  for  this  present  life.  Death  threatens  it,  so  far 
as  we  can  see,  with  utter  destruction.  Soul  and  spirit  instinctively 
cling  to  this  present  body.  At  that  point  revelation  steps  in  with 
one  of  the  great  foundational  certainties  and  teaches  us  to  say 
'  We  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of  this  tabernacle  were  dis- 
.oolved,  we  have  a  building  of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands, 
eternal  in  the  heavens.' 

"  There  is  a  natural  body,  and  there  is  a  spiritual  body.  But 
that  is  not  all.  Whither  after  all  shall  we  go  when  this  earthly 
tent  dwelling  is  gone  ?  To  what  scenes  does  death  introduce  us  ? 
What,  in  a  word,  lies  for  the  Christian  just  across  that  little  trench 
which  we  call  a  grave  ?  Here  is  a  new  and  most  serious  cause  of 
solicitude.  And  here  ao-ain  revelation  brines  to  faith  the  needed 
word  :  '  We  are  confident,  I  say,  and  willing  rather  to  be  absent 
from  the  body  and  to  be  at  home  with  the  Lord.' 

"  Note,  now,  how  that  assurance  gives  confidence.  First,  in  that 
the  transition  is  instantaneous.  To  be  absent  from  the  body  is  to 
be  at  home  with  the  Lord.  And  secondly,  every  question  of  the 
soul  which  miofht  bring:  back  an  answer  of  fear  is  satisfied  with  that 
one  little  word  'home.' 

"  And  this  is  the  Christian  doctrine  of  death.  '  We  know.* 
'We  are  always  confident.'  In  this  triumphant  assurance  D wight 
L.  Moody  lived,  and  at  high  noon  last  Friday  he  died.  We  are  not 
mc-t,  dear   friends,  to   mourn    a  defeat,  but   to  celebrate  a  triumph. 


422  THE  FUNERAL 

He  'walked  with  God  and  he  was  not,  for  God  took  him.'  There 
in  the  West,  in  the  presence  of  great  audiences  of  12,000  of  his 
fellow-men,  God  spoke  to  him  to  lay  it  all  down  and  come  home. 
He  would  have  planned  it  so. 

"  This  is  not  the  place,  nor  am  I  the  man  to  present  a  study  of 
the  life  and  character  of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  No  one  will  ever 
question  that  we  are  laying  to-day  in  the  kindly  bosom  of  earth 
the  mortal  body  of  a  great  man.  Whether  we  measure  greatness 
by  quality  of  character  or  by  qualities  of  intellect,  Dwight  L.Moody 
must  be  accounted  great. 

"The  basis  of  Mr.  Moody's  character  was  sincerity,  genuineness. 
He  had  an  inveterate  aversion  to  all  forms  of  sham,  unreality  and 
pretence.  Most  of  all  did  he  detest  religious  pretence  or  cant. 
Along  with  this  fundamental  quality,  Mr.  Moody  cherished  a  great 
love  of  righteousness.  His  first  question  concerning  any  proposed 
action  was  :  '  Is  it  right?'  But  these  two  qualities,  necessarily  at 
the  bottom  of  all  noble  characters,  were  in  him  suffused  and  trans- 
figured by  divine  grace,  Besides  all  this,  Mr.  Moody  was  in  a 
wonderful  degree  brave,  magnanimous  and  unselfish. 

"  Doubtless  this  unlettered  New  England  country  boy  became 
what  he  was  by  the  grace  of  God.  The  secrets  of  Dwight  L, 
Moody's  power  were  :  First,  in  a  definite  experience  of  Christ's  sav- 
ing grace.  He  had  passed  out  of  death  into  life,  and  he  knew  it. 
Secondly,  Mr.  Moody  believed  in  the  divine  authority  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. The  Bible  was,  to  him,  the  voice  of  God,  and  he  made  it 
resound  as  such  in  the  consciences  of  men.  Thirdly,  he  was  bap- 
tized with  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  he  knew  it.  It  was  to  him  as  definite 
an  experience  as  his  conversion.  Fourthly,  he  was  a  man  of  prayer ; 
he  believed  in  a  divine  and  unfettered  God.  Fifthly,  Mr.  Moody 
believed  in  work,  in  ceaseless  effort,  in  wise  provision,  in  the  power 
of  organization,  of  publicity. 


THE  FUNERAL  423 

"  I  like  to  think  of  D.  L.  Moody  in  Heaven.  I  like  to  think  of 
him  with  his  Lord  and  with  Elijah,  Daniel,  Paul,  Augustine, 
Luther,  Wesley  and  Finney. 

"  Farewell  for  a  little  time,  great  heart,  may  a  double  portion 
of  the  spirit  be  vouchsafed  to  us  who  remain." 

The  next  address  was  by  the  Rev.  H.  B.  Weston,  of  Crozier 
Theological  Seminary,  Chester,  Pa.,  who  said  : 

Rev.   H.   B.  Weston's  Address 

"  I  counted  it  among  one  of  the  greatest  pleasures  of  my  life 
that  I  had  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  Moody ;  that  I  was  placed  under 
his  influence,  and  that  I  was  permitted  to  study  God's  words  and 
work  through  him, 

"  He  was  the  greatest  religious  character  of  this  century. 
When  we  see  men  who  are  eminent  among  their  fellows,  we  always 
attribute  it  to  some  special  natural  gift  with  which  they  are  endowed, 
some  special  education  they  have  received,  or  some  magnetic  per- 
sonality with  which  they  are  blessed.  Mr.  Moody  had  none  of 
these,  and  yet,  no  man  had  such  power  of  drawing  the  multitude. 
No  man  could  surpass  him  in  teaching  and  influencing  individuals 
— individuals  of  brain,  of  executive  power.  I  am  speaking  to  some 
of  such  this  afternoon.  Mr.  Moody  had  the  power  of  grouping 
them  to  himself  with  hooks  of  steel,  and  many  of  them  were  good 
workers  with  him  many  years ;  and  they  will  carry  on  his  work 
now  that  he  has  passed  away. 

"  Mr.  Moody  had  none  of  the  gifts  and  qualifications  that  I 
have  mentioned:  no  promise,  and  apparently  no  possibiltity,  in 
his  early  life  ;  no  early  promise,  if  he  had  any  promise,  of  the  life  he 
had  to  lead.  What  had  he  ?  There  was  nothing  else  as  inter- 
esting in  Northfield  as  Mr.  Moody  to  me.  I  listened  to  him  with 
profound  and  p-re?>t  interest  and  profit,  as  the  one  who  could  draw 


424  THE  FUNERAL 

the  multitude  as  no  one  else  in  the  world.  He  entered  fully  into 
the  words,  *  Man  shall  not  live  by  bread  alone,  but  by  every  word 
that  proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth  of  God.'  So  he  fed  upon  that 
word  ;  his  life  was  instantly  a  growth,  because  he  fed  on  the  Word 
of   God,  so   that  he   might   have   it   ready  for  every  emergency. 

"  All  this  was  not  for  himself,  but  for  others.  He  did  not 
study  the  Bible  for  himself  alone,  but  that  he  might  add  to  his 
stock  of  knowledge.  He  did  not  study  his  Bible  in  order  to  criti- 
cise, but  to  make  men  partakers  of  that  light  which  had  enlarged 
his  own  soul,  and  that,  I  appeal  to  you,  was  the  first  desire  of  his 
heart,  that  other  men  might  live. 

"  With  this  one  conception  in  his  heart  he  dots  his  plain  all 
over  with  buildings  which  will  stand  until  the  millennium.  His  soul 
was  full  of  joy,  and  that  definite  joy  finds  its  expression  like  the 
Hebrew  prophet.  I  don't  think  he  himself  sang,  but  he  wanted  the 
Gospel  sung,  and  I  used  to  listen  to  song  after  song  and  remember 
all  the  time  this  was  simply  the  expression  of  that  joy  that  welled 
up  in  his  heart,  the  joy  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

"  You  remember  last  summer  how  hopeful  he  was,  constantly, 
as  he  compared  himself  to  '  that  old  man  of  eighty  years,  and  I  am 
only  sixty-two,  and  I  have  so  much  before  me  to  live  for.'  Because 
D.  L.  Moody  had  mastered,  or  the  power  of  Christ  had  so  mastered, 
every  fibre  of  his  being ;  because  of  that  completeness  of  consecra- 
tion— I  hardly  dare  say  it — were  Jesus  Christ  given  the  same  body, 
the  same  mental  caliber  and  surroundings.  He  would  fill  up  his 
life  much  as  Moody  did,  and  that  is  the  reason  to-day  that  I  would 
rather  be  Dwight  L.  Moody  in  his  coffin  than  any  living  man  on 
earth." 

The  next  speaker  was  the  Rev.  R,  A.  Torrey,  who  said  : 

"  It  is  often  the  first  duty  of  a  pastor  to  speak  words  of  comfort 
to   those   whose    hearts    are   aching   with    sorrow   and    breaking 


THE  FUNERAL  425 

underneath  the  burden  of  death,  but  this  is  utterly  unnecessary  to-day. 
The  God  of  all  comfort  has  already  abundantly  comforted  them, 
and  they  will  be  able  to  comfort  others.  I  have  spent  hours  in  the 
past  few  days  with  those  who  were  nearest  to  our  departed  friend, 
and  the  words  I  have  heard  from  them  have  been  words  of  '  Rest 
in  God  and  triumph.' 

Rev.   R.  a.  Torrey's  Estimate  of  Mr.   Moody 

"  As  one  of  them  has  said :  '  God  must  be  answering-  the 
prayers  that  are  going  up  for  us  all  over  the  world.  We  are 
being  so  wonderfully  sustained.'  Another  has  said  :  '  His  last  four 
glorious  hours  of  life  have  taken  all  the  sting  out  of  death,'  and 
still  another,  '  Be  sure  that  every  word  to-day  is  a  word  of  triumph.' 

"  Two  thoughts  has  God  laid  upon  my  heart  this  hour.  The 
first  is  that  wonderful  letter  of  Paul  in  I  Corinthians,  xv.  10:  'By 
the  grace  of  God  I  am  what  I  am.'  God  wonderfully  magnified 
His  grace  in  the  life  of  D.  L.  Moody.  God  was  magnified  in  his 
birth.  The  babe  that  was  born  sixty-two  years  ago — the  wonderful 
soul  was  God's  gift  to  the  world.  How  much  that  meant  to  the 
world  ;  how  much  the  world  has  been  blessed  and  benefited  by  it 
we  shall  never  know  this  side  the  coming  of  Christ.  God's  grace 
was  magnified  in  his  conversion.  He  was  born  in  sin,  as  we  are, 
but  God,  by  tbe  power  of  His  word,  the  regenerating  power  of  His 
Holy  Spirit,  made  him  a  mighty  man  of  God.  How  much  the  con- 
version of  that  boy  in  Boston  forty-three  years  ago  meant  to  the 
world  no  man  can  tell,  but  it  was  God's  grace  that  did  it. 

"  God's  grace  and  love  were  magnified  again  in  the  development 
of  that  character.  He  had  the  strength  of  body  that  was  possessed 
by  few  sons  of  men. 

"  It  was  all  from  God.  To  God  alone  was  it  due  that  he  dif- 
fered from  other  men.     That  character  was  God's  gift  to  a  world 


426  THE  FUNERAL 

that  sorely  needed  men  like  him.  God's  grace  and  love  were  ttiag- 
nified  ao-ain  in  his  service.  The  orreat  secret  of  his  success  was 
supernatural  power,  given  in  answer  to  prayer. 

"  Time  and  again  has  the  question  been  asked,  What  was  the 
secret  of  his  wonderful  power  ?  The  question  is  easily  answered. 
There  were  doubtless  secondary  things  that  contributed  to  it,  but 
the  great  central  secret  of  his  power  was  the  anointing  of  the  Holy 
Ghost.  It  was  simply  another  fulfilment  by  God  of  the  promise 
that  has  been  realized  throughout  the  centuries  of  the  Church's  his- 
tory: *Ye  shall  receive  power,  after  that  the  Holy  Ghost  shall 
come  upon  you.' 

"  God  was  magnified  again  in  his  marvelous  triumph  over  death, 
but  what  we  call  death  had  absolutely  no  terrors  for  him.  He 
calmly  looked  death  in  the  face  and  said,  '  Earth  is  receding. 
Heaven  is  opening.  God  is  calling  me.  Is  this  death  ?  It  isn't 
bad  at  all.  It  is  sweet.  No  pain.  No  valley.  I  have  been 
within  the  gates !  It  is  beautiful.  It  is  glorious.  Do  not 
call  me  back.     God  is  calling  me.' 

"  This  was  God's  g-race  in  Christ  that  was  thus  mag-nified  in  our 
brother's  triumph  over  that  last  enemy.  Death.  From  beginning 
to  end,  from  the  hour  of  his  birth  until  he  is  laid  at  rest  on  yonder 
hilltop,  Mr.  Moody's  life  has  been  a  promulgation  of  God's  ever- 
lasting grace  and  love. 

"  The  other  thought,  that  God  has  laid  upon  my  heart  in  these 
last  few  hours  are  those  words  of  Joshua  i.  2  :  '  Moses  my  servant  is 
dead.  Now,  therefore,  arise,  go  over  this  Jordan,  thou,  and  all  this 
people,  unto  the  land  which  I  do  give  to  them.' 

"  The  death  of  Mr.  Moody  is  a  call  to  his  children,  his  asso- 
ciates, ministers  of  the  Word  everywhere,  and  to  the  whole 
Church  :  '  Go  forward.  Our  leader  has  fallen.'  '  Let  us  give  up 
the  work,'  some  would  say.     Not  for  a  moment.    Listen  to  what  God 


THE  FUNERAL  429 

says  :  '  Our  leader  has  fallen.  Move  forward.  Moses  my  servant 
is  dead,  therefore  arise,  go  in  and  possess  the  land.  As  I  was  with 
D.  L.  Moody,  so  I  will  be  with  you.  I  will  not  fail  thee  nor  for- 
sake thee.' 

"It  is  remarkable  how  unanimous  all  those  who  have  been  asso- 
ciated with  Mr.  Moody  are  upon  this  point.  The  great  institutions 
that  he  has  established  at  Northfield,  Mt.  Hermon,  and  Chicago,  and 
the  work  they  represent,  must  be  pushed  to  the  front  as  never 
before.      Many  men  are  looking  for  a  great  revival. 

"  Mr.  Moody  himself  said  when  he  felt  the  call  of  death  at 
Kansas  City  :  '  I  know  how  much  better  it  would  be  for  me  to  go, 
but  we  are  on  the  verge  of  a  great  revival,  like  that  of  1857,  and  I 
want  to  have  a  hand  in  it.'  He  will  have  a  mighty  hand  in  it. 
His  death,  with  the  triumphal  scenes  that  surround  it,  are  part  of 
God's  way  of  answering  the  prayers  that  have  been  going  on  for  so 
long  in  our  land  for  a  revival. 

"  From  this  bier  there  goes  up  to-day  a  call  to  the  ministry,  to 
the  Church  :  '  Forward  ! '  Seek,  claim,  receive  the  anointing  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  and  then  go  forthwith,  to  every  corner,  preach  in 
public  and  in  private  to  every  man,  woman,  and  child  the  infallible 
Word  of  God." 

The  Words  of  Bishop  Mallalieu. 

The  Rev.  W.  F.   Mallalieu,  bishop  of  the   Methodist  church, 

said : 

"  '  Servant  of  God,  well  done, 

Thy  glorious  warfare's  past, 
The  battle's  fought,  the  race  is  won, 
And  thou  art  crowned  at  last. ' 

"  I  first  met  and  became  acquainted  with  him,  whose  death  we 
mourn,  in  London  in  the  summer  of  1875.  From  that  day,  when 
he  moved  the  masses  of  the  world's  metropolis,  to  the  hour  when 


430  THE  FUNERAL 

he  answered  the  call  of  God  to  conie  up  higher,  I  have  known  him, 
esteemed  him  and  loved  him.  Surely  we  may  say,  and  the  world 
will  endorse  the  affirmation,  that  in  his  death  one  of  the  truest, 
bravest,  purest  and  most  influential  men  of  this  wonderful  19th 
century  has  passed  to  his  rest  and  his  reward.  With  feelings  of 
unspeakable  loss  and  desolation  we  gather  about  the  casket  that 
contains  all  that  was  mortal  of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  And  yet  a 
mighty  uplift  and  inspiration  must  come  to  each  one  of  us  as  we 
think  of  his  character  and  his  achievements,  for  he  was  : 

'One,  who  never  turned  his  back  but  marched  breast  forward, 
Never  doubted  clouds  would  break. 
Never  dreamed,  though  right  were  worsted,  wrong  would  triumph. ' 

"In  bone  and  brawn  and  brain  he  was  a  typical  New  Eng- 
lander ;  he  was  descended  from  the  choicest  New  England  stock ; 
he  was  born  of  a  New  England  mother,  and  from  his  earliest  life 
he  breathed  the  free  air  of  his  native  hills  and  was  carefully 
nurtured  in  the  knowledge  of  God  and  the  holy  traditions  and 
histories  of  the  glorious  past.  It  was  to  be  expected  of  him  that 
he  would  become  a  Christian  of  pronounced  characteristics,  for  he 
consecrated  himself  thoroughly  and  completely  and  irrevocably  to 
the  service  of  God  and  humanity.  The  heart  of  no  disciple  of  the 
Master  ever  beat  with  more  genuine,  sympathetic  and  utterly 
unselfish  loyalty  than  did  the  great,  generous,  loving  heart  of  our 
translated  friend.  Because  he  held  fast  to  the  absolute  truth  of 
the  Bible,  and  unequivocally  and  intensely  believed  it  to  be  the 
unerrant  Word  of  God  ;  because  he  preached  the  Gospel  rather 
than  talked  about  the  Gospel ;  because  he  used  his  mother  tongue, 
the  terse,  clear,  ringing,  straightforward  Saxon  ;  because  he  had 
the  profoundest  sense  of  brotherhood  with  all  poor,  unfortunate 
and  even  outcast  people  ;  because  he  was  unaffectedly  tender  and 
patient   with    the    weak    and    sinful ;    because    he    hated    evil    as 


THE  FUNERAL  431 

thoroughly  as  he  loved  goodness ;  because  he  knew  right  how  to 
lead  penitent  souls  to  the  Saviour  ;  because  he  had  the  happy  art 
of  arousing  Christian  people  to  a  vivid  sense  of  their  obligations 
and  inciting  them  to  the  performance  of  their  duties ;  because  he 
had  in  his  own  soul  a  conscious,  joyous  experience  of  personal 
salvation — ^the  people  flocked  to  his  services,  they  heard  him  gladly, 
they  were  led  to  Christ,  and  he  came  to  be  prized  and  honored  by 
all  denominations,  so  that  to-day  all  Protestantism  recognizes  the 
fact  that  he  was  God's  servant,  an  embassador  of  Christ,  and 
indeed  a  chosen  vessel  to  bear  the  name  of  Jesus  to  the  nations. 

"  We  shall  not  again  behold  his  manly  form  animated  with  life, 
hear  his  thrilling  voice  or  be  moved  by  his  consecrated  personality 
but  if  we  are  true  and  faithful  to  our  Lord,  we  shall  see  him  in 
glory,  for  already  he  walks  the  streets  of  the  heavenly  city,  he 
mingles  in  the  song  of  the  innumerable  company  of  white-robed 
saints,  sees  the  King  in  his  beauty,  and  waits  our  coming.  May 
God  grant  that  in  due  time  we  may  meet  him  over  yonder." 

Dr.   Chapman's  Address. 

The  Rev.  J.  Wilbur  Chapman  of  New  York,  the  next  speaker, 
said  : 

"  I  cannot  bring  myself  to  feel  this  afternoon  that  this  service 
is  a  reality.  It  seems  to  me  that  we  must  awake  from  some  dream 
and  see  again  the  face  of  this  dear  man  of  God,  which  we  have 
so  many  times  seen.  It  is  a  new  picture  to  me  this  afternoon.  I 
never  before  saw  Mr.  Moody  with  his  eyes  closed.  They  were  always 
open,  and  it  seemed  to  me  open  not  only  to  see  where  he  could 
help  others,  but  where  he  could  help  me.  His  hands  were  always 
outstretched  to  help  others.  I  never  came  near  him  without  his 
helping  me." 


432  THE  FUNERAL 

At  this  point  the  sun  came  through  a  crack  in  a  blind,  and  the 
rays  fell  directly  on  Mr.  Moody's  face,  and  nowhere  else  in  the 
darkened  church  did  a  single  beam  of  sunshine  fall. 

"  The  only  thing  that  seems  natural  is  the  sunlight  now  on  his 
face.  There  was  always  a  halo  around  him.  I  can  only  give  a 
slight  tribute  of  the  help  he  has  done  me,  I  can  only  especially 
dedicate  myself  to  God,  that  I,  with  others,  may  preach  the  Gospel 
he  taught. 

"  When  I  was  a  student,  Mr.  Moody  found  me.  I  had  no 
object  in  Christ.  He  pointed  me  to  the  hope  in  God  ;  he  saw  my 
heart,  and  I  saw  his  Saviour.  I  have  had  a  definite  life  since  then. 
When  perplexities  have  arisen,  from  those  lips  came  the  words, 
'  Who  are  you  doubting  ?  If  you  believe  in  God's  Word,  who 
are  you  doubting  ?'  I  was  a  pastor,  a  preacher,  without  much  result. 
One  day  Mr.  Moody  came  to  me,  and,  with  one  hand  on  my  shoul- 
der and  the  other  on  the  open  Word  of  God,  he  said:  'Young 
man,  you  had  better  get  more  of  this  into  your  life,'  and  when  I 
became  an  evangelist  myself,  in  perplexity  I  would  still  sit  at  his 
feet,  and  every  perplexity  would  vanish  just  as  mist  before  the  rising 
sun.  And,  indeed,  I  never  came  without  the  desire  to  be  a  better 
man,  and  be  more  like  him,  as  he  was  like  Jesus  Christ.  If  my 
own  father  were  lying  in  the  coffin  I  could  not  feel  more  the  sense 

of  loss." 

Rev.  a.  T.   Pierson's  Address. 

The  Rev.  A.  T.  Pierson  spoke  next,  saying  : 

"  When  a  great  tree  falls,  you  know,  not  only  by  its  branches, 
but  by  its  roots,  how  much  soil  it  drew  up  as  it  fell.  I  know  of  no 
other  man  who  has  fallen  in  this  country  having  as  wide  a  tract  of 
uprooting  as  this  man  who  has  just  left  us. 

"  I  have  been  thinking  of  the  four  departures  during  the  last 
quarter  of  a  century,  of  Charles  Spurgeon  of  London,  A.  J.  Gordon 
of  Boston,  Catherine  Booth,  mother  of  the  Salvation  Army,  and 


THE  FUNERAL  433 

George  Miiller  of  Bristol,  England,  and  not  one  made  the  world- 
wide commotion  in  their  departures  that  Dwight  L.  Moody  has 
caused. 

"  Now,  I  think  we  ought  to  be  very  careful  of  what  is  said. 
There  is  a  temptation  to  say  more  than  ought  to  be  said,  and  we 
should  be  careful  to  speak  as  in  the  presence  of  God.  This  is  a 
time  to  glorify  God. 

"  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  a  great  man.  That  man  when  he 
entered  the  church  in  1856  in  Boston,  after  ten  months  of  proba- 
tion, was  told  by  his  pastor  that  he  was  not  a  sound  believer.  That 
pastor,  taking  him  aside,  told  him  he  had  better  keep  still  in 
prayer  meeting.  The  man  the  church  held  out  at  arm's  length  has 
become  the  preacher  of  preachers,  the  teacher  of  teachers,  the 
evangelist  of  evangelists.  It  is  a  most  humiliating  lesson  for  the 
Church  of  God. 

"  When,  in  1858,  he  decided  to  give  all  his  time,  he  gave  the 
key  to  his  future.  I  say  everything  D.  L.  Moody  has  touched  has 
been  a  success.  Do  you  know  that  with  careful  reckoning  he  has 
reached  100,000,000  of  people  since  he  first  became  a  Christian? 
You  may  take  all  the  years  of  public  services  in  this  land  and 
Great  Britain,  take  into  consideration  all  the  addresses  he  de- 
livered, and  the  audiences  of  his  churches,  and  it  will  reach 
100,000,000.  Take  into  consideration  all  the  people  his  books 
have  reached  and  the  languages  into  which  they  have  been  trans- 
lated; look  beyond  his  evangelistic  work  to  the  work  of  education, 
the  schools,  the  Chicago  Bible  Institute,  and  the  Bible  Institute 
here.  Thousands  of  people  in  the  world  owe  their  hope  to  Dwight 
L.  Moody  who  was  the  means  of  their  consecration. 

"  I  want  to  say  a  word  of  Mr.  Moody's  entrance  into  Heaven. 
When  he  entered  into  Heaven  there  must  have  been  an  unusual 
commotion.      I  want  to  ask  you  to-day  whether  you  can  think  of 


434  THE  FUNERAL 

any  other  man  of  the  last  half-century  whose  coming  so  many  souls 
would  have  welcomed  at  the  gates  of  Heaven.  It  was  a  triumphal 
entrance  into  glory. 

"  No  man  who  has  been  associated  with  him  in  Christian  work 
has  not  seen  that  there  is  but  one  way  to  live,  and  that  way  to  live 
wholly  for  God.  The  thing  that  D.  L.  Moody  stood  and  will 
stand  for  centuries  to  come  was  his  living  only  for  God.  He 
made  mistakes,  no  doubt,  and  if  any  of  us  is  without  sin  in  this 
respect,  we  might  cast  a  stone  at  him,  but  I  am  satisfied  that  the 
mistakes  of  D.  L.  Moody  were  the  mistakes  of  a  stream  that  over- 
flowed its  banks.  It  is  a  great  deal  better  to  be  full  and  over- 
flowing than  to  be  empty  and  have  nothing  to  overflow. 

"  I  feel  myself  called  to-day  by  the  presence  of  God  to  give  eye 
that  what  is  left  shall  be  consecrated  more  wholly  to  him.  Mr. 
Moody,  John  Wanamaker,  James  Spurgeon  (brother  of  Charles), 
and  myself  were  born  in  the  same  year.  Only  two  of  us  are  still 
alive.     John  Wanamaker,  let  us  still  live  wholly  for  God." 

Rev.   H.   M.  Wharton's  Words 

The  Rev.  H.  M.  Wharton,  of  Philadelphia,  spoke  in  behalf  of 
the  southern  States.      He  said  : 

"  I  am  sure,  dear  friends,  that  if  the  people  of  the  South  could 
express  their  feeling  to-day,  they  would  ask  me  to  say  we  all  loved 
Mr.  Moody  ;  we  did  love  him  with  all  our  hearts.  It  seems  to  me 
that  when  he  went  inside  the  gates  of  Heaven  he  left  the  gates 
open  a  little,  and  a  little  of  the  light  fell  upon  us  all. 

"  As  I  go  from  this  place  to-day,  I  am  more  convinced  that  I 
desire  to  live  and  be  a  more  faithful  minister  and  more  earnest 
Christian,  and  more  consecrated  in  my  life.  We  will  not  say  '  Good 
night,  dear  Mr.  Moody,'  for  in  the  morning  we  will  meet  again." 


THE  FUNERAL 


435 


As    Mr.    Wharton    ceased,   Mr.  William   Moody    rose  in   the 

pew,  and  said  he  would  like  to  speak  of  his  father  as  a  parent.     He 

said : 

Mr.  W.   R.   Moody's  Tribute  to  His  Father 

"  As  a  son,  I  want  to  say  a  few  words  of  him  as  a  father.  We 
have  heard  from  his  pastor,  his  associates  and  friends,  and  he  was 
just  as  true  a  father.  I  don't  think  he  showed  up  in  any  way  bet- 
ter than  when,  on  one  or  two  occasions,  in  dealing  with  us  as  chil- 
dren, with  his  impulsive  nature,  he  spoke  rather  sharply.  We 
have  known  him  to  come  to  us  and  say  :  '  My  children,  my  son, 
my  daughter,  I  spoke  quickly  ;  I  did  wrong  ;  I  want  you  to  forgive 
me.'     That  was  D.  L.  Moody  as  a  father. 

"  He  was  not  yearning  to  go  ;  he  loved  his  work.  Life  was 
very  attractive  ;  it  seems  as  though  on  that  early  morning  as  he 
had  one  foot  upon  the  threshold  it  was  given  him  for  our  sake  to 
give  us  a  word  of  comfort.  He  said  :  '  This  is  bliss  ;  it  is  like  a 
trance.  If  this  is  death  it  is  beautiful.'  And  his  face  lighted  up  as 
he  mentioned  those  whom  he  saw. 

"  We  could  not  call  him  back  ;  we  tried  to,  for  a  moment,  but 
we  could  not.  We  thank  God  for  his  home  life,  for  his  true  life, 
and  we  thank  God  that  he  was  our  father,  and  that  he  led  each  one 
of  his  children  to  know  Jesus  Christ." 

Mr.  John  Wanamaker's  Remarks 

Dr.  Scofield  then  called  upon  the  Hon.  John  Wanamaker,  of 
Philadelphia,  who  said  : 

"  If  I  had  any  words  to  say,  it  would  be  that  the  best  com.men- 
tary  on  the  Scriptures,  the  best  pictures  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
were  in  our  knowledge  of  the  beautiful  man  who  is  sleeping  in  our 
presence  to-day.  For  the  first  time  I  can  understand  well  the 
kind  of  a  man  Paul  was,  and  Nehemiah,  and  Oliver  Cromwell.     I 


436  THE  FUNERAL 

think  of  Mr.  Moody  as  a  Stonewall  Jackson  of  the  Church  of  God 
of  this  century.  But  the  sweetest  of  all  thoughts  of  him  are  his 
prayers  and  his  kindnesses.  It  was  as  if  we  were  all  taken  into  his 
family  and  he  had  a  familiarity  with  every  one  and  we  were  his 
closest  friends. 

"  There  is  not  any  place  in  this  country  where  you  can  go  with- 
out seeing  the  work  of  this  man  of  God.  It  seems  to  make  every 
man  seem  small,  because  he  lived  so  far  above  us,  as  we  crept  close 
to  his  feet.   It  is  true  of  every  one  who  sought  to  be  like  him. 

"  I  can  run  back  into  the  beginning  of  his  manhood,  and  there 
have  the  privilege  of  being  close  to  him.  I  can  call  up  personal 
friends  that  were  at  the  head  of  railroads,  that  were  distinguished 
in  finance  and  business,  and  I  declare  to  you,  great  as  their  succes- 
ses were,  I  don't  believe  that  there  is  one  of  them  who  would  not 
gladly  have  changed  place  with  D.  L.  Moody. 

"  The  Christian  laborer,  I  believe,  to-day  looms  up  more  lumi- 
nous than  any  man  who  lived  in  the  century.  It  seems  as  if  it  were 
a  vision  when  the  one  who  has  passed  away  stood  in  Philadelphia 
last  month,  when,  on  his  way  to  Kansas  City,  and,  with  tears  in  his 
eyes,  he  said  to  me  with  a  sigh  :  '  If  I  could  only  hold  one  great  city 
in  the  East  before  I  die,  I  think  it  might  help  other  cities  to  do 
the  same.'  Still  trusting  God,  he  turned  his  back  on  his  home  and 
family,  and  went  i,ooo  miles  carrying  that  burden,  and  it  was  too 
much  for  him.  A  great  many  of  the  people  of  the  sixties  are  quit- 
ting work,  and  if  anything  is  to  be  done  for  God,  it  is  time  we  con- 
secrate ourselves  to  Him." 


SENIOR  GLEN,   EAST   NORTHFIELD,  where  Mr.  Moody  met  the  students  of  the  Senior  Class  at 
ti  A.M.,  daily  during  the  sessions  of  the  school 


ROUND    TOP.     Thu   Hi.l  v.h-.r'-  .Mr.   .MuuJy  l.-cqu^iu!>    Ui^   M^u:i^^=,,  and  where  he  aow  lies  hurried. 


CHAPTER    XXVIII. 

Roundtop,  where  Mr.  Moody  Loved  to  Speak  and 
v/here  he  was  Buried. 

THE  funeral  services  in  the  church  were  over.  In  every  way 
it  was  the  most  remarkable  gathering  that  could  possibly  be 
imagined  on  any  such  occasion,  and  one  friend  was  heard  to 
say  to  another  as  we  passed  out  of  the  Congregational  Church, 
"  I  would  not  have  missed  this  privilege  for  any  consideration. 
My  faith  in  God  and  in  His  promises  is  stronger  to-day  than  ever; 
my  fear  of  death  is  all  taken  away.  Did  you  ever  in  all  your 
experience  attend  a  service  in  which  the  power  of  God  was  more 
mightily  manifest?"  One  distinguished  man  said  to  a  brother 
minister  as  they  walked  in  solemn  procession  toward  the  grave, 
"  If  it  had  been  possible  to  repeat  that  service  with  all  its  attend- 
ing circumstances  and  surroundings  in  all  the  cities  of  the  land, 
D.  L.  Moody  would  have  been  greater  in  his  death  than  in  his  life, 
and  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  would  have  been  brought  to 

Christ." 

A  Most  Notable  Service 

It  was  a  notable  service  because  there  was  a  spirit  of  victory 
in  it  all.  From  where  we  sat  on  the  platform  we  could  look  down 
into  the  faces  of  those  who  had  been  bereaved,  and  while  there 
were  marks  of  tears  upon  their  faces,  yet  there  was  such  evident 
joy  in  the  thought  that  they  had  had  him  so  long,  and  that  he  had 
brought  so  much  of  blessing  into  the  lives  of  countless  numbers  of 
people,  that  one  really  forgot  that  he  was  attending  a  funeral  and 

439 


440  ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 

thanked  God  that  he  was  sitting  together  with   dear   friends   in 
heavenly  places  in  Christ  Jesus. 

It  was  notable  also,  because  not  very  often  on  funeral  occasions 
do  the  bereaved  ones  join  in  the  singing  of  the  hymns,  and  yet  at 
this  funeral  very  frequently  you  could  see  that  the  lips  of  the 
members  of  the  family  were  moving,  and  you  knew  they  were 
singing  the  songs  that  Mr.  Moody  loved,  and  singing  them  just  in 
the  way  that  would  have  been  pleasing  to  him. 

A  Ray  of  Sunlight 

It  was  notable  also,  because  of  the  fact  that  just  in  the  midst 
of  the  services  one  single  ray  of  sunlight  from  the  setting  sun 
came  through  the  window,  but  the  only  face  in  all  the  building  that 
was  touched  with  the  glory  of  that  streak  of  light  was  the  face  of 
the  man  of  God  lying  in  his  coffin.  It  was  just  what  all  could  have 
wished  for  him,  for  to  those  who  knew  him  and  loved  him,  there 
was  always  a  kind  of  a  halo  of  glory  about  him,  and  this  touch  of 
sunlight  was  just  a  hint  to  us  as  to  how  his  face  would  appear  vv^hen 
in  the  better  country  we  should  see  him  once  again  with  the 
redemption  body  transfigured  into  the  likeness  of  Christ.  I  seri- 
ously question  if  any  man  in  the  present  generation  ever  walked 
closer  with  God  than  did  Mr.  Moody.  He  was  my  ideal  in  this 
respect  as  in  many  others.  His  was  a  story  like  that  of  Enoch  of 
old,  and  when  he  died  we  could  understand  it  all,  he  simply  was 
not,  for  God  took  him. 

All  the  funerals  associated  with  Mr.  Moody's  family  have  ever 
been  most  touching.  When  his  mother  was  carried  to  the  tomb, 
she  was  not  taken  away  until  her  son  had  said  what  only  a  devoted 
and  godly  son  could  say  concerning  the  life  of  a  consistent  Chris- 
tian mother,  and  of  her  it  was  true  as  the  wise  man  said,  "Her 
children  rise  up  and  call  her  blessed." 


ROUNDTOP,   WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  44^ 

When  the  children  of  his  eldest  son,  Mr.  W.  R.  Moody,  were 
buried,  once  again  did  he  speak  such  words  as  he  only  was  able  to 
speak.  Quite  recently, at  the  funeral  of  Irene  Moody,  he  said  the 
most  touching  words  concerning  his  love  for  his  grandchild,  told 
how  she  had  always  greeted  him  with  a  smile,  and  then  told  how 
she  had  influenced  his  life  as  very  few  people  had — no  one  could 
have  said  these  words  with  such  tenderness  and  sweetness  as 
Mr.  Moody,  but  it  was  just  like  him  to  say  them  for  the  grief  of 
his  son  was  as  if  it  had  been  his  own. 

While  holding  services  in  my  Church,  Rev.  B,  Fay  Mills  spoke 
concerning  the  funeral  of  the  brother  of  Mr.  Moody, as  contrasted 
with  the  funeral  of  Mr.  Robert  Ingersoll's  brother,  and  the  picture 
is  most  striking  in  its  contrasts  : 

A  Most  Striking  Picture 

**  It  was  in  June,  1879.  This  brother  had  died  In  Washington, 
and  Colonel  Ingersoll  stood  by  the  coflin  and  tried  to  read  his 
address,  which  he  had  carefully  prepared.  His  voice  became 
agitated,  his  form  trembled,  and  his  emotion  overcame  him. 
Finally  he  put  down  the  paper,  and,  bowing  himself  upon  the 
coffin,  as  if  he  would  throw  his  arms  about  it,  he  gave  vent  to 
uncontrollable  grief.  When  at  last  he  was  able  to  proceed  he  raised 
himself  up,  and  among  other  words  he  said  these  :  '  Whether  in 
mid-ocean  or  'mid  the  breakers  of  the  farther  shore,  a  wreck  must 
mark  at  last  the  end  of  each  and  all ;  and  every  life,  no  matter  if 
its  every  hour  be  filled  with  love  and  every  moment  jeweled  with 
a  joy,  will  at  the  last  become  a  tragedy  as  sad  and  dark  and  deep 
as  can  be  woven  of  the  warp  and  woof  of  mystery  and  death. 
*  *  *  Life  is  a  dark  and  barren  vale  between  the  cold  and  ice- 
clad  peaks  of  two  eternities.     We  strive  in  vain  to  look  beyond 


442  ROUNDTOP,   U'HERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 

the  heights.     We  Hft  our  wailing  voice  in  the  silence  of  the  night, 
and  hear  no  answer  but  the  bitter  echo  of  our  cry.' 

"Could  ever  words   more  sadly  hopeless  have  been  uttered  at 
a  time  like  that  ?     And  then  he  added  what  to  me  were  the  most 
pathetic  words  of  all — something  about  '  hope  trying  to  see  a  star, 
and  listeninsf  for  the  rustle  of  an  anorel's  wino;s.' 
"  Mrs.  Browning  most  truly  writes  : 

**  'There  is  no  God,'  the  foolish  saith, 

But  none,  '  There  is  no  sorrow. ' 
And  nature  oft  in  bitter  need 

The  cry  of  faith  will  borrow. 
Eyes  which  the  preacher  could  not  school, 

By  wayside  graves  are  raised  ; 
And  hps  cry,  '  God  be  pitiful!' 

Which  ne'er  said,  '  God  be  praised!' 

'*  I  think  I  should  like  a  greater  comfort  and  a  better  hope 

than  that. 

His  Brother's  Funeral 

"  Dwight  Moody  had  a  brother,  and  after  his  own  conversion 
he  earnestly  pleaded  with  him,  until  the  brother  also  yielded  him- 
self to  Christ,  and  became  such  an  earnest  worker  that  he  was  the 
means  of  leading  a  number  of  his  friends  at  his  home  into  the 
kingdom.  And  then  this  brother  died  and  was  buried.  A  few 
years  ago",  Mn  Mills  said,  "as  I  spent  a  day  in  Northfield,  and  was 
driven  through  its  beautiful  streets  by  one  of  the  old  residents,  I 
said,  '  I  wish  you  would  tell  me  something  about  Mr.  Moody  that 
may  not  be  generally  known.'  And  as  we  passed  the  old  white 
Church  he  said,  '  I  remember  his  brother's  funeral.'  He  said  that 
there  were  a  number  of  ministers  in  the  pulpit,  and  that  after  they 
had  finished  the  usual  services  and  the  coffin-lid  was  about  to  be 
put  in  its  place,  Mr.  Moody  arose,  and  stepping  forward  from  the 
seat  where  he  had  been  sittino-,  with  a  shininor  face,  he  laid  one 


kOUNDTOP,   WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  443 

hind  upon   the  coffin,  and  then,  lifting  the  other,   he  poured  out 

such  a  stream  of  thanksgiving  unto  God  for  the  life  that  was  gone 

and  for  the  wonderful  comfort  and  joy  and  hope  that  came  to  him 

in  Jesus  Christ,  that  it  was  said  by  this  onlooker   that  it  almost 

seemed  as  if  the  heavens  were  opened   and  they   could    see    the 

angels  of  God  ascending  and  descending  upon  the  Son  of  man. 

At  last  he  ceased,  the  coffin-lid  was  placed  in  its  position,  and  the 

body  was  carried  out  and  laid  in  the  grave.      On  one  side  of  the 

sepulcher  stood  a  large  number  of  young  men,  many  of  them  led 

to  Christ  through  the  influence  of  this  one  who  was  gone,  and  they 

held  in  their  hands  beautiful  white  flowers,  which   they  cast  down 

upon  the  coffin  in  token  of  the  glorious  resurrection.      And  on  the 

other  side  of  the  grave  stood  Mr.  Moody  ;  and  he  said  that  as  he 

stood  there   and  thought  of  how  his  brother,  being  dead,  was  yet 

speaking,  he  felt  that  if  he  were  silent  the  very  stones  would  cry 

out,  and  he  cried  with   a  loud  voice,  '  Glory  to  God  !     Glory  be  to 

God !     O    death    where    is    thy    sting  ?      O    grave,    where    is    thy 

victory  ?'  " 

On  the  Procession  to  Roundtop 

When  the  last  hymn  had  been  sung  on  this  day  of  the  funeral 
of  D.  L.  Moody,  the  audience  was  requested  to  remain  seated  until 
the  family  had  passed  out  and  also  until  the  pallbearers  had  taken 
from  the  Church  the  precious  remains  of  this  servant  of  God.  As 
we  passed  along  in  solemn  procession  tow9.rds  Roundtop,  it  was 
my  privilege  to  hear  something  of  the  conversation  of  those  who 
followed  the  students  who  had  been  given  the  privilege  of  bearing 
him  to  his  tomb.  One  gentleman  said  to  his  friend,  "  When  Mr. 
Moody's  little  grandchild  was  buried  only  a  short  time  ago,  the 
students  carried  her  from  the  house  to  her  grave,  and  Mr.  Moody 
said  to  his  son,  '  I  think  I  should  like  to  be.carried  like  that  my- 
self,'" and  so  the  students  bore  him  carefully  to  the  place  where 

24 


444  ROUNDTOP,   WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 

he  is  to  rest  until  the  Lord  himself.shall  descend  from  Heaven  with 
a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel  and  the  trump  of  God,  and 
he  shall  rise. 

Roundtop  was  reached  in  the  dusk  of  that  winter  day.  The 
grave  was  lined  with  evergreen,  and  the  resting  place  made  as  com- 
fortable as  possible.  After  a  moment's  gazing  at  the  grave,  all 
but  the  immediate  family  and  the  specially  invited  guests  were 
requested  to  withdraw,  but  before  they  went  away  some  one  started 
the  following  old  hymn  which  Mr.  Moody  ever  loved  to  have  sung 
in  his  meetings.  One  voice  was  added  to  another  until  at  last  a 
o-reat  volume  of  sono-  rose  towards  God  : 

Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul, 

Let  me  to  Thy  bosom  fly. 
While  the  nearer  waters  roll, 

While  the  tempest  still  is  high  ; 
Hide  me,  O  my  Saviour,  hide, 

Till  the  storm  of  life  is  past ; 
Safe  into  the  haven  guide. 

Oh,  receive  my  soul  at  last. 

Other  refuge  have  I  none. 

Hangs  my  helpless  soul  on  Thee  : 
Leave,  oh,  leave  me  not  alone, 

Still  support  and  comfort  me. 
All  my  trust  on  Thee  is  stayed, 

All  my  help  from  Thee  I  bring  ; 
Cover  my  defenceless  head 

With  the  shadow  of  Thy  wing. 

Thou,  O  Christ,  art  all  I  want  ; 

More  than  all  in  Thee  I  find  ; 
Raise  the  fallen,  cheer  the  faint, 

Heal  the  sick,  and  lead  the  blind. 
Just  and  holy  is  Thy  Name, 

I  am  all  unrighteousness  : 
Vile,  and  full  of  sin  I  am. 

Thou  art  full  of  truth  and  grace. 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  445 

Plenteous  grace  with  Thee  is  found — 

Grace  to  cover  all  my  sin  : 
Let  the  healing  streams  abound  ; 

Make  me,  keep  me  pure,  within. 
Thou  of  life  the  Fountain  art, 

Freely  let  me  take  of  Thee  ; 
Spring  Thou  up  within  my  heart, 

Rise  to  all  eternity. 

With  heads  solemnly  bowed  for  a  moment,  the  benediction  was 
pronounced,  and  all  that  was  mortal  of  D.  L.  Moody,  the  greatest 
evangelist  of  modern  times,  and  one  of  the  best  men  that  ever 
lived  was  lying  in  the  grave. 

A  Place  of  Blessing 

Roundtop  has  ever  been  a  place  of  blessing  to  the  Northfield 
visitors.  There  each  evening,  when  the  conferences  are  in  session, 
as  the  day  is  dying  out  of  the  sky,  Bible  students  gather  to  talk  of 
the  things  concerning  the  Kingdom.  At  this  point  many  of  the 
young  men  and  women  of  the  various  students'  gatherings,  which 
have  been  so  intimately  associated  with  Northfield,  have  decided 
their  life  work,  and  forth  from  this  point  they  have  gone  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth  to  preach  the  Gospel.  The  old  haystack  at 
Williamstown  figures  no  more  conspicuously  in  the  history  of  mis- 
sions than  Roundtop  figures  in  the  lives  of  a  countless  number 
of  Christians  throuo-hout  the  whole  world. 

A.  J.  Gordon,  of  sainted  memory,  delivered  some  of  his  most 
telling  addresses  from  this  point.  I  recall  one  evening  when  he  spoke 
of  the  Lord's  return,  and  just  as  he  finished  he  stood  for  a  moment 
with  his  kindly  face,  all  aglow  with  the  power  of  his  theme,  and 
said,  "  I  wish  He  might  come  now,"  and  as  we  looked  towards  the 
west  and  saw  the  sunset  glow  upon  everything  it  came  to  us  as  a 
regret   that   the   Lord   did   not   come  at  that  instant,  and  that  we 


446  ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 

must  go  down  from  this  mount  of  privilege  to  work  and  to  wait, 
possibly  through  weary  years  until  He  should  appear. 

From  this  point  Mr.  S.  H.  Hadley,  Jerry  Macauley's  successor 
in  the  old  Water  Street  Mission  has  told  the  story  of  his  remarka- 
ble conversion,  until  people  first  sobbed  in  sympathy  for  him 
because  of  all  that  he  had  suffered  through  strong  drink,  and  then 
praised  God  that  He  had  raised  him  up  such  a  miracle  of  grace  and 
such  a  monument  to  His  keeping  power. 

Here  Mr.  John  Willis  Baer  has  met  the  young  people  who 
were  seeking  to  know  what  they  must  do  to  be  used  of  God,  and 
under  the  influence  of  the  Spirit  of  God  has  pointed  many  a  young 
man  and  young  woman  to  the  Spirit  of  God  who  could  fill  their 
lives  and  make  them  useful  in  every  way. 

Indeed,  every  visitor  to  Northfield  journeys  to  Roundtop,  and 
every  speaker  at  Northfield  counted  himself  fortunate  if  he  were 
permitted  to  gather  the  people  about  him  and  speak  as  once  the 
Master  did  when  He  went  up  into  a  mountain. 

Roundtop  Particularly  Identified  With  Mr.   Moody 

But  Roundtop  is  particularly  identified  with  Mr.  Moody  himself. 
It  is  situated  just  back  of  his  home.  It  was  the  place  where 
often  he  used  to  go  for  meditation  and  prayer,  and  whatever  it  has 
been  to  friends  of  Northfield  in  the  past,  it  shall  be  more  sacred  to 
them  in  the  future,  because  it  is  the  last  resting  place  of  the  man. 
whom  they  devotedly  loved. 

I  recall  one  picture  which  can  never  be  effaced  from  my 
memory.  It  was  just  at  the  close  of  one  of  the  first  days  of 
the  Northfield  conference  proper  when  it  was  announced 
that  Mr.  Moody  would  lead  the  Roundtop  services,  and  as  we 
were  all  gathered  together  singing,  he  came  up.  I  can  see  him  as 
plainly  as  I  see  my  friend  of  to-day.      He  was  carrying  a  chair  in 


f^-'- 
^^m 


9  giPV^^  ' 


w—         ipv  . 

**  i    -. 

fl 

i  III  ill 


^^v^-^Q^ ' 


.1         H  I  i 


.  I    J 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  449 

his  hand  upon  which  he  was  to  sit  in  the  midst  of  his  people. 
He  had  his  old,  worn  Bible  in  the  one  hand,  and  with  his  face 
beaming  with  delight  because  so  many  people  were  there  at  the 
beginning  of  the  conference,  he  said,  "  I  will  ask  Mr.  Jacobs  to 
sing,"  and  the  great  strong  voice  of  the  singer  sounded  out  from 
that  hilltop  and  came  back  to  us  like  an  echo  from  the  hills,  until 
some  of  us  wondered  whether  we  were  in  the  body  or  not.  • 
"  Now,  some  one  lead  us  in  prayer,"  said  the  leader.  "  Now,  let  us 
sing,"  and  there  altogether  we  sang,  he  keeping  time  with  his 
hymn-book.     The  hymn  was  "  Christ  Returneth  "  : 

It  may  be  at  morn,  when  the  day  is  awaking, 

When  sunhght  through  darkness  and  shadow  is  breaking, 

That  Jesus  will  come  in  the  fulness  of  glory, 
To  receive  from  the  world   ' '  His  own  ' ' . 

Chorus — 

O  Lord  Jesus,  how  long,  how  long 

Ere  we  shout  the  glad  song, 
Christ  returneth  ;  Hallelujah,  Hallelujah,   Amen. 
Hallelujah,  Amen. 

As  the  blessed  words  rolled  out  from  the  lips  of  those  assem- 
bled there  on  that  sacred  hill,  I  remember  how  transported  we 
all  were  with  the  bliss  of  that  great  truth,  "  Christ  returneth  !"  The 
faces  of  those  about  me  shone  with  joy,  and  there  before  us  sat  our 
beloved  leader,  the  great  factor  of  modern  evangelism.  He  always 
seemed  ready  for  Christ's  coming,  and  I  doubt  if  his  joyful  demeanor 
would  have  altered  in  the  least,  if  at  that  moment  the  Heavens  had 
opened.  He  was  always  ready  because  his  consecration  of  himself 
to  God  was  renewed  with  every  breath,  and  attested  by  each  suc- 
ceeding act  in  his  life. 

When  the  smging  was  at  an  end,  Mr.  Moody  opened  his  Bible, 
and  said :  "  I  have  come  up  to-night,  dear  friends,  in  a  spirit  of 
praise  and  thankfulness,  to  give  you  just  a  few   nuggets  from  the 


450 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 


margin  of  my  Bible  ;  you  can  take,  them  down  if  you  like,  and  if  I 
go  too  fast  for  you  just  stop  me."  I  stood  just  behind  his  chair, 
and  beginning  at  Genesis  he  turned  over  the  pages  of  his  Bible, 
and  quickly  I  wrote  down  what  he  had  to  say.  The  following  is 
almost  an  exact  report  of  that  Roundtop  meeting,  and  everything 
recorded  here  I  have,  at  one  time  or  another,  heard  him  say : 
"  Turn  to  Genesis  and  put  this  down,"  he  said. 

Genesis. 

Adam  illustrates  Human  nature. 
Cain  "         The  carnal  mind.  » 

Abel  "         The  spiritual  mind. 

Enoch  "         Communion. 

Noah  "         Regeneration. 

Abraham     "         Faith. 
Isaac  *'         Sonship. 

Jacob.  "         Service. 

Joseph  "         Suffering  and  glory. 

"  Now,  let  us  go  on  to  Exodus  the  third  chapter,  maybe  you 
would  like  this. 

Objections  raised  by  Moses  for  declining  and  avoiding  God's 
call  :— 

Lack  of  fitness.     V.  1 1. 
words.     V.  13. 
authority.      Chap.  4  :  i. 
powers  of  speech.     4  :  10. 
special  adaptation.     4:  13. 
success  at  first  attempt.     5  :  23. 
acceptance  by  Israelites.     6:12. 
'*  Have  you  ever  noticed  the  seven  feasts  in  Leviticus,  twenty- 
third  chapter?     I  have  long  had  it  in  my  Bible, 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  451 

"Seven  feasts: — 

1.  Sabbath — Rest. 

2.  Passover — Death  of  Christ. 

3.  First-fruits — -Resurrection. 

4.  Pentecost — Descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

5.  Trumpets — Ingathering  of  Israel. 

6.  Atonement — -Mourning  for  sin. 

7.  Tabernacles — Christ's  indwelling  in  the  Christian. 

"  Sin   is  an  awful  thing,  let  every  man  make  a  note  of  this. 
Joshua  7:21. 

"Steps  in  Achan's  sin  : — 

1.  'I  saw.' 

2.  '  I  coveted.' 

3.  '  I  took.' 

4.  '  I  hid.' 

Compare  Eve,  Gen.  3:6;  Ananias,  Acts  5  :  i-io. 
"  How  mean  was  the  sin  of  Achan  !      He  saw  the   Babylonish 
garment,  and  all  the  soldier  in  him  withered  up  and  he  became  a 
sneaking  thief. 

"  Here  is  a  good  thing  on  forgiven  sin.       Psalm  32. 
"Seven  steps  to  blessedness  of  forgiven  sin  : — 
Conviction.      Vs.  3,  4. 
Confession.     V.  5. 
Forgiveness.     V.  5. 
Prayer.      V.  6. 
Protection.      V.  7. 
Guidance.     Vs.  8,  9. 
Joy.     Vs.  10,  II. 
"Here  are  seven  things  God  will  do  for  the  believer.      I  find 
them  in  the  91st  Psalm. 

*I  will  deliver  him,'     Vs.  14,  15. 


452  ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  IsWODY  WAS  BURIED 

I  will  set  him  on  high.'    ..V.  14, 

I  will  answer  his  call.'     V.   15. 

I  will  be  with  him  in  trouble.'     V.  15. 

I  will  honor  him.'     V.  15. 

I  will  satisfy  him.'     V.  16. 

I  will  show  him  my  salvation.'     V.  16. 
"  Now  let  us  find  something  in  the   New  Testament.      Look 
at  Matt.  7. 

''In  this  chapter  we  have  : — 

Two  gates — strait,  and  wide  ; 
Two  ways — broad,  and  narrow  ; 
Two  classes — many,  and  few  ; 
Two  destinations — life,  and  destruction  ; 
Two  trees — good,  and  corrupt  ; 
Two  fruits — cfood,  and  evil  ; 

Two  things  done  to  trees — hewn  down,  and  cast  out ; 
Two  houses  ; 

Two  foundations — rock,  and  sand  ; 
Two  builders — wise,  and  foolish  ; 
Two  storms  ; 

Two  results — the  one  house  stood,  the  other  fell. 
"  I  found  this  somewhere  ;  does  anyone  want  it  ? 
''Christ  was  foretold  to  : — 

Adam — as  a  man.      Gen:  3:15. 
Abraham — as  to  His  nation.      Gen.  22  :  18. 
Jacob — as  to  His  tribe.     Gen.  49  :  10. 
Isaiah — as  to  His  family.      Isa.  11  :  1-5. 
Micah — as  to  His  town.      Micah  5  :  2. 
Daniel — as  to  His  time.      Dan.  9  :  25. 
Mary — as  to  His  person,      Luke  i:  30, 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  453 

By  angels — as  to  His  date.      Luke  2:11. 

By  a  star — as  to  His  birthplace.      Matt.  2  :  9. 
"  Here  is  an  outline  for  a  sermon.      Let  the  ministers  put  it 
down.        Luke  10  :  42, 

'  One  thing  is  needful  '■ — ^the  Gospel. 

'  One  thing  I  know.'     John  9  :  25. 

'  One  thing  have  I  desired.'      Ps.  27:4. 

'One  thing  I  do.'     Phil.  3:  13,  14. 

'  Not  one  thing  hath  failed.'     Josh.  23  :  14. 

'  Be  not  ignorant  of  this  one  thing.'     2  Peter  3  :  8 

'One  thing  thou  lackest.'     Mark  10:  21. 
"  Here  is  something  about  the  Prodigal  Son."      Luke  15. 

His  condition — *  in  want.'     V.  14. 

His  conviction — *  came  to  himself.'     V.  17 

His  confidence — '  I  will  arise.'     V.  18. 

His  confession — '  I  have  sinned.'     V.  18. 

His  contrition — 'no  more  worthy.'     V.  19. 

His  conversion — '  He  arose  and  came.'     V.  20. 
"Turning-points  in  his  life  : — 

Sick  of  home.      Vs.  12,  13. 

Homesick.      Vs.  17-19. 

Home,     Vs.  20-24. 

Sequel.     Vs.  25-32. 
"Six  cases  of  men  'afar  off'  from  God: — 

The  prodigal.      Chap.  15  :  13. 

The  rich  man.     Chap.  16  :  23. 

The  ten  lepers.     Chap.  17  :  12. 

The  publican.     Chap.  18  :  13. 

The  beggar.     Chap.  18  :  40. 

Peter,     Chap.  22  :  54. 


454  ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED 

"  God's   Word  gives  us  a  picture  such  as  we  find  in  no  other 
place,  turn  to  John,  sixth  chapter. 
"  Seven  classes  of  people  : 

1.  Curious.     V.  2. 

2.  Admiring.     V.  14. 

3.  Greedy.     V.  26. 

4.  Skeptical.      V.  36. 

5.  Murmurers.     V.  41. 

6.  Scoffers.     V.  52, 

7.  Backsliders.     V.  66.. 

**  I  have  found  much  help  in  Hebrews.      Note  this  : — 

Sin  is  met  by  Atonement.     Chap,  i  :  3. 

Guilt  is  met  by  justification.      2:9. 

Defilement  is  met  by  sanctification.      2  :  11. 

Alienation  is  met  by  reconciliation.      2:17. 

Temptation  is  met  by  succor.      2:18. 
"  Christ  communicates  eternity  of  existence  to  everything  he 
touches :  — 

His  throne  is  for  ever  and  ever.      Heb.  i  :  8. 

His  salvation  is  eternal.      5  :  9. 

His  priesthood  is  unchangeable.      7  :  24. 

His  redemption  is  eternal.     9:12. 

His  inheritance  is  eternal.     9:15. 

His  kinofdom  cannot  be  moved.      12  :  28. 

His  covenant  is  everlasting.      13  :  20. 
"  The  key  word  of  Hebrews  is  '  better ; '  see  how  many  times  it 
occurs. 

Better  hope.     Chap.  7  :  19. 

Better  Testament.      7  :  22. 

Better  covenant.     8  :  6. 

Better  promises.     8  :  6. 


ROUNDTOP,    WHERE  MR.  MOODY  WAS  BURIED  455 

Better  sacrifices.     9  :  23. 

Better  substance.      10  :  34. 

Better  resurrection.      11  :  35. 

Better  country.      11  :  16. 

Better  things.  12  :  24." 
When  it  was  too  dark  for  him  to  see,  the  well-marked  Bible 
was  closed,  and  he  offered  such  a  prayer  as  I  have  rarely  heard, 
thanking  God  that  He  had  permitted  us  to  come  to  Northfield,  and 
asking  Him  that  He  might  make  it  more  of  a  blessing  than  ever 
before  in  all  its  history.  This  is  but  a  specimen  service  of  Round- 
top,  and  if  the  trees  which  stand  there  could  speak,  they  would  tell 
as  thrilling  a  story  of  scenes  witnessed  there  as  has  ever  been 
pressed  into  human  language,  and  now  from  this  time  on,  pilgrims 
will  journey  to  Northfield  and  to  this  the  new  heart  of  the  old 
town,  because  in  this  grave  lies  the  body  of  a  man  who  yielded 
himself  absolutely  to  God,  who  had  only  one  supreme  desire,  and 
that  was  that  he  might  glorify  Him.  The  words  of  the  poet 
certainly  describe  him  in  his  life  : 

"  The  strong  man's  strength  to  toil  for  Christ, 

The  fervent  preacher's  skill, 
I  sometimes  wish  but  better  far 

To  be  just  what  God  will. 
No  service  in  itself  is  small, 

None  great,  though  earth  it  fill, 
But  that  is  small  which  seeks  its  own, 

That  great  which  seeks  God's  will.  " 

D.  L.  Moody  was  a  mighty  man,  because,  he  sought,  as  nearly 
as  any  man  I  have  ever  seen,  to  do  the  will  of  God. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

Memorial  Services 

THE  announcement  of  the  death  of  Mr.  Moody  was  a  shock  to 
many  thousands.  Numerous  telegrams  of  condolence  which 
were  sent  to  the  bereaved  family  from  all  the  quarters  of 
the  world  expressed  but  faintly  the  sense  of  loss  which  affected  not 
only  those  who  had  known  him  personally,  but  also  a  great  follow- 
ing of  those  who  had  known  him  only  through  his  work.  Hun- 
dreds of  memorial  services  were  held.  The  great  meeting  in  New 
York,  on  Monday  afternoon,  January  8,  1900,  brought  out  so  much 
of  interest  in  regard  to  Mr.  Moody  and  in  regard  to  the  sentiment 
entertained  toward  him  on  all  sides  that  I  believe  an  account  of 
the  services  worthy  of  permanent  record  in  this  place. 

The  Great  Meeting  in   New  York 

At  the  hour  appointed  for  the  opening  of  the  services,  Mr. 
Wm.  E.  Dodge,  the  presiding  officer,  announced  a  favorite  hymn 
of  Mr.  Moody's,  "  In  the  Cross  of  Christ  I  Glory."  After  the 
singrinor,  the  Rev.  Dr.  A.  T.  Pierson  read  a  number  of  selections 
from  the  Bible,  being  those  verses  of  which  Mr.  Moody  was 
especially  fond.      The  Rev.  John  Balcolm  Shaw  then  led  in  prayer. 

Dr.  David  H.  Greer  then  spoke.      He  said : 

"In  the  history  of  the  Church  of  Christ  very  few  have 
touched  so  many  hearts  and  influenced  so  many  lives  as  the  dear 
friend  we  come  to  remember  and  to  thank  God  for  to-day. 

"  I  am  sure  it  is  no  exaggeration  to  say  that  if  all  those  whom 
456 


\Vn 


X  •»  »S 


\'~n 


-^-v>*^ 


v-^ 


•  ^n 


V-^--'* 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  459 

he  has  led  to  a  better  Hfe  were  to  be  gathered  together,  a  half- 
dozen  halls  of  this  size  would  not  hold  them.  In  the  tender 
services  held  at  Northfield  last  week,  Mr.  Moody's  pastor  said,  that 
they  were  not  gathered  to  mourn  a  defeat  but  to  rejoice  in  a 
victory.  So  to-day  there  is  not  the  note  of  sadness  in  our  gather- 
ing nor  a  funeral  gloom.  We  are  gathered  together  this  afternoon 
only  to  thank  God  with  all  our  hearts  for  so  fruitful  and  successful 
a  life,  and  to  pray  that  that  influence  which  he  exercised  while  here 
among  us,  shall  continue.  He  is  not  dead,  he  has  gone  to  the 
better  life  above,  and  he  lives  with  us  to-day  and  will  live  on,  by 
his  example  and  by  the  inspiration  that  came  from  his  words  and 

his  life. 

His  Conversion  Like  That  of  St.   Paul 

*'  When  Mr.  Moody  became  a  Christian  man  it  was  like  the 
conversion  of  St.  Paul, — clear,  decisive,  and  full.  When  the 
blessed  message  came  to  him,  that  God  had  offered  pardon  and 
peace  and  life  here  and  eternal,  he  accepted  it  in  all  its  fullness, 
and  he  wondered  with  great  astonishment  that  anyone  could  turn 
away  from  such  a  message  and  such  an  offer,  and  he  longed  to 
bring  men  to  accept  it  and  believe  in  it.  From  the  very  beginning 
his  theology  was  very  simple.  His  creed  was  :  '  God  so  loved  the 
world  that  He  sent  His  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  Him  shall  have  eternal  life.'  And  this  message  he 
repeated  with  all  his  courage  and  manliness  and  strength  through 
all  his  life,  and  so  earnestly  that  it  told  wherever  he  carried  it. 

"  Mr.  Moody's  early  work  was  a  very  simple  one.  He  had  very 
few  opportunities  of  education.  At  that  time  he  had  no  gift  of 
utterance,  but  he  found  fellowship  and  help  in  the  Young  Men's 
Christian  Association,  and  he  commenced  his  work  among  a  few 
poor  children  in  Chicago  when  he  was  a  mere  clerk  there.  I 
remember   nearly   forty   years  ago   going"  with   him   one    Sunday 


460  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

morning  to  that  poor  little  school  across  the  river,  and  I  caught 
sight  then  of  the  peculiar  character  of  the  man,  his  directness, 
manliness,  and  hence  his  great  influence  upon  those  children  and 
upon  their  parents. 

"  There  were  two  early  influences  that  directed  his  life  more 
than  any  others.  One  was  the  companionship  and  help  that  came 
to  him  from  the  brotherhood  of  the  Youncr  Men's  Christian 
Association.  All  his  life  he  acknowledged  that  as  having  formed 
part  of  his  character,  and  all  his  life  he  was  a  warm  friend  of  the 
Associations  and  aided  them  in  every  way.  But  the  stronger  and 
greater  influence  was  his  beginning  to  study  the  English  Bible. 
He  had  the  idea  that  a  great  many  other  good  men  have  that,  if 
God  wanted  him  to  do  work  and  speak  for  Him,  God  would  put 
words  in  his  mouth.  In  his  earliest  efforts  his  talks  were  repeti- 
tions of  each  other,  and  without  much  effect.  A  kind,  earnest 
Christian  man  who  influenced  him  very  much  talked  with  him  and 
urged  him  that,  if  he  wanted  to  do  God's  work,  he  must  fit  himself 
in  the  best  way  for  such  service  and  prepare  himself  to  do  his 
Master's  work.  He  urged  him,  therefore,  as  the  best  means  for  so 
fitting  himself,  to  study  the  Bible.  Mr.  Moody  paid  heed  to  the 
advice  ;  he  shut  himself  up  for  a  long  time  and  devoted  himself  to 
a  thorough  and  intense  study  of  the  Bible.  From  this  study  he 
acquired  two  qualities,  which  in  later  years  added  much  to  his 
power :  first  that  clear-cut,  plain,  simple,  Anglo-Saxon  of  the  King 
James  version,  which  gave  him  such  immense  power  over  people 
everywhere  ;  second,  he  acquired  from  his  study  of  the  Bible  an 
arsenal  of  promise  and  warning,  which  he  used  through  all  his  life 
with  magnificent  power  and  effect.  There  was  something  wonder- 
ful about  his  simple  directness.  To  you,  my  friends,  who  are  here 
this  afternoon,  I  could  give  you,  by  the  hour,  instances  of  the  keen 
way  he  went  to  a  point.      I    remember  when   I   first  met  him  in 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  461 

Chicaofo  he  went  to  call  on  one  occasion  on  a  leadinsf  merchant 
and  most  influential  man  in  that  city,  and  when  he  went  out  he 
turned  to  him  and  baid  :  'If  you  were  only  a  Christian  man,  what  a 
grand  influence  you  would  have  in  this  great  city  ! '  That  man  has 
been  a  communicant  of  the  Church  for  years,  and  he  was  Moody's 
best  friend  for  many  years  afterward.  There  was  a  manliness 
about  Moody,  a  hatred  of  cant  and  mere  religious  form.  He  had  the 
most  intense  and  superb  enthusiasm  of  any  man  I  ever  knew, 
tempered  by  strong  human  common  sense.  He  had  a  wonderful 
intuitive  knowledge  of  men. 

"  We  all  know  very  much  of  his  wonderful  successes  as  a 
preacher,  but  those  who  knew  him  best  and  were  closest  to  him 
know  that  the  great  power  of  his  life  was  in  personal  conversation 
with  men.  The  greatest  sermon  I  ever  heard  from  Mr,  Moody 
was  one  night  when  we  were  coming  along  Madison  Avenue  at 
half-past  twelve  o'clock,  going  home  from  one  of  those  great  meet- 
ings in  Madison  Square.  We  had  been  kept  there  by  those  who 
insisted  upon  getting  advice  from  Mr.  Moody,  and,  as  we  were 
moving  along,  a  gentleman  came  up  from  behind  and  said,  '  Mr. 
Moody,  how  shall  I  accept  Christ  and  change  my  life  ? '  He 
turned  in  the  moonlight,  and  standing  there  on  the  corner  he  said 
a  few  sharply-cut,  kindly  words,  and  he  put  the  truth  so  earnestly 
to  that  man  that  there  was  no  getting  away  from  it,  and  the  man's 
heart  was  changed  from  that  day. 

"  I  was  privileged  to  be  with  him  at  those  great  meetings  at 
the  Haymarket,  London,  and  what  struck  me  and  surprised  me 
most  was  the  number  of  educated  and  cultivated  people  who  came 
there — the  large  number  of  literary  people  who  came  there  to  hear 
Mr.  Moody.  The  great  majority  of  them  did  not  believe  in 
religion,  and  they  came  to  hear  and  enjoy  his  clean-cut  English 
phraseology.      His  work   at   Cambridge   and    Oxford  and    in   the 


462  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

universities  was  simply  wonderful.  When  he  went  to  Oxford  and 
Cambridge  they  determined  to  run  him  out  of  the  town  ;  they  did 
not  want  that  kind  of  a  man  there,  and  before  they  knew  him  and 
had  heard  him  they  were  utterly  opposed  to  his  methods.  But  his 
courage  and  his  straightforwardness  conquered  them,  and  the 
number  of  young  men,  not  only  in  those  universities  but  over  all 
the  world,  whose  lives  have  been  influenced  for  the  better  by  Mr. 
Moody's  work  we  will  never  know  until  we  get  into  another  and 
better  world.  His  schools  at  Northfield  are  models  of  organization 
and  thoughtfulness.  I  trust  that  they  will  be  carried  on  as  a 
memorial  to  him. 

"  What  touched  me  more  than  anything  else  in  Mr.  Moody's 
character  was  his  extreme  modesty  about  himself.  He  was  the 
most  masterful  man  I  ever  knew  ;  when  it  came  to  the  oruidance 
and  instruction  of  others,  he  was  like  a  general,  managing  his  army  ; 
but  when  it  came  to  himself  he  was  a  most  modest  man.  I  was 
privileged  to  be  in  the  house  with  him  during  all  the  time  of  those 
great  meetings  at  Madison  Square.  I  never  heard  him  appreciate 
himself  once  ;  you  would  never  have  known  he  had  anything  to  do 
with  those  meetings ;  time  after  time  he  said  to  his  friends  :  '  My 
only  wonder  is  that  God  can  use  so  feeble  an  instrument  as  I,  to  do 
his  work.'  His  views  became  broader  as  he  grew  older,  and  his 
prejudices,  of  which  he  had  many  in  his  early  life,  were  thrown  ofT. 
I  have  heard  him  say,  '  I  am  ashamed  of  myself ;  you  know  I  have 
always  talked  about  the  extravagance  and  worldliness  of  the  women 
in  New  York  ;  it  has  been  the  theme  of  many  of  my  talks  in  many 
places,  but  I  have  been  here  now  several  days  ;  I  have  been  on  the 
East  Side  and  on  the  West  Side  ;  I  have  been  where  the  schools 
are  which  these  women  are  conducting,  and  I  want  to  say  that  I 
have  never  known  so  much  self-sacrifice  and  devotion  as  is  shown 
by  these  women,  and  I   am  ashamed  of  what  I  have  said.'     I  have 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  463 

heard  him  say,  '  You  know  that  I  have  had  great  prejudice  against 

the  Roman   CathoHc  Church,  but   I  am  ashamed  of  it ;   I  have  had 

some  opportunity  of  noting  lately  that  among  the  churches  where 

Christ  is  preached  there  is  none  where  He  is  preached  so  simply 

and  where   His  cross  is  held  up  as  it  is  in  the  Catholic  churches.' 

I  mention  these  incidents  simply  to  show  how  he  had  thrown  off 

his  earlier  prejudices." 

The  next  speaker  was  to  have  been  the    Hon.  John   Wana- 

maker,  but  illness  prevented  his  attendance,  and  at  his  request  Mr. 

Sankey  was   asked  to   take   his   place.     After  leading  the  hymn, 

"Saved  by  Grace,"  Mr.  Sankey  gave  the  audience  an  account  of 

the  funeral  services  at  Northfield  and  the  incidents  attending  that 

ceremony. 

Mr.  John  R.   Mott's  Address 

Mr.  John  R.  Mott,  the  next  speaker,  one  of  the  leading  Chris- 
tian Association  workers  in  the  world  said  : 

"  Among  some  people  the  impression  exists  that  Mr.  Moody 
did  not  exert  a  great  and  marked  influence  upon  thinking  young  men 
and  women.  This  is  a  great  mistake  ;  there  is  no  class  over  which 
Mr.  Moody  exerted  a  greater  and  more  helpful  or  more  continuous 
influence  than  over  the  students  of  this  and  other  countries.  He 
was  one  of  the  main  factors  of  that  great  spiritual  awakening  at 
Princeton  in  1876  and  1877,  resulting  in  the  conversion  of  100  young 
men,  and  marked  the  impulse  of  the  movement  that  led  to  the 
Christian  Association  among  the  colleges  of  this  country  and 
Canada.  When  the  su^grestion  was  made  that  an  actual  conference 
of  college  men  should  be  held,  it  was  the  influence,  co-operation, 
and  leadership  of  Mr.  Moody  that  made  it  a  fact,  and  the  gathering 
at  Mount  Hermon  in  1886,  which  has  since  convened  from  year  to 
year,  has  extended  from  Northfield  to  other  parts  of  the  country ; 
until  now  we  have  some  1,200  young  men  from  the  universities  and 

25 


464  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

colleges  meeting  together  every. year  in  the  United  States  and 
Canada,  and  nearly  1,000  college  women,  while  the  movement  has 
spread  from  this  country  into  Great  Britain,  Switzerland,  France, 
Germany,  Australasia,  even  into  China  and  Japan,  and  year  by  year 
the  inter-collegiate  gatherings  are  held  for  the  training  of  young 
men  and  young  women  for  leadership  in  the  work  of  Christ. 

"  Possibly  no  greater  influence  has  gone  out  from  Mr.  Moody'a 
life  than  that  of  these  conferences.  Be  it  understood  that  these 
are  conferences,  not  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the  students,  but  of  the 
young  men  and  women  selected  by  the  other  students  to  become 
leaders  in  the  organized  work  of  Christ  in  the  colleges  and  univer- 
sities. Yale  will  send  this  year  fifty,  or  one  hundred,  young  men  to 
be  leaders  in  the  committees  and  Christian  societies;  Harvard  will 
send  a  large  delegation,  and  Princeton  will  send  hardly  less  than 
forty.  Bryn  Mawr  and  other  young  women's  schools  will  send  their 
full  delegations  to  take  their  part  as  leaders  in  the  work  of  Christ. 
The  Student's  Volunteer  Mission  movement  had  its  origrin  in  these 
meetings,  and  under  the  leadership  of  Mr.  Moody.  God  used  Mr. 
Moody  for  the  purpose,  and  he  seemed  to  generate  the  atmosphere 
which  created  this  Divine  movement  as  projected  into  foreign  fields. 
The  great  increase  in  our  Bible  classes  from  2,000  to  12,000  within 
a  comparatively  short  time  is  traceable  directly  to  these  annual  con- 
ferences under  Mr.  Moody's  leadership.  There  is  no  sign  which  is 
attended  with  greater  promise  to  the  Church  of  God  than  this  one. 

"  By  his  services  to  students,  has  the  work  of  evangelism  been 
most  advanced.  The  greatest  revivals  ever  known  at  Oxford  and  , 
Cambridge  were  led  by  Moody.  The  most  notable  awakening  at 
the  University  of  Virginia  was  during  the  work  of  Mr.  Moody. 
The  last  work  among  students  which  he  performed,  the  last  work 
of  this  description,  was  at  the  Yale  revival,  where  twenty  or  thirty 
young  men  acknowledged  their  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  as  Lord.      Who 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  465 

can  measure  what  he  accompHshed  !  Henry  Drummond  worked 
among  students,  and  we  might  add  twenty  other  names ;  and  many 
of  these  men  to-day  are  having  access  to  Hves  and  hearts  of  col- 
lege men  in  this  and  other  countries  for  the  reason  of  Mr.  Moody's 
lasting  influence  upon  them. 

"  You  ask  me  what  is  the  secret  of  this  influence  of  his  among 
thinking  young  men  and  young  women.  I  find  it  more  espec- 
ially in  his  matchless  knowledge  of  the  human  heart.  After  that  it 
seems  to  me  that  his  most  marked  influence  v/as  in  his  wonderful 
honesty.  If  he  didn't  know  a  thing  he  said,  '  I  don't  know.'  That 
gave  him  the  intelligent  confidence  of  the  students.  Then  again 
his  freedom  from  cant  or  professionalism  gave  them  additional 
confidence  in  him.  I  have  known  students  to  go  to  his  meetings 
in  a  critical  frame  of  mind  with  the  purpose  of  analyzing  his 
methods  ;  I  have  seen  them  subdued,  almost  without  exception,  by 
his  matchless  sympathy  and  heart  power.  He  appealed  to  the 
heroic  and  self-sacrificing  in  young  men,  and  then  there  was  over 
all  this  and  through  it  all  that  without  which  his  results  and  work 
would  be  unexplainable,  the  fact  of  his  abounding  fidelity  and 
spiritual  life,  due  to  the  fact  that  he  was  a  God-possessed  man.  I 
find  in  these  the  secret  of  his  great  success. 

"  It  was  most  proper  and  fitting  that  his  body  should  be 
placed  at  rest  on  Roundtop ;  that  one  spot  in  all  the  wide  world 
most  gloriously  and  sacredly  associated  with  his  teachings  and  the 
influences  of  his  life-work. 

"  His  going  from  us  leaves  a  great  gap  ;  but  I  am  reminded 
of  the  words  of  Henry  Drummond  on  the  death  of  a  friend,  when 
he  wrote  to  a  classmate  :  '  We  must  close  up  the  ranks  and  work 
hard.'" 

The  Chairman  introduced  the  Rev.  Dr.  Theodore  Cuyler  as  one 
of  Mr.  Moody's  earliest  friends  and  co-laborers.     Dr.  Cuyler  said  : 


466  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

"  The  most  unique  and  extraordinary  Gospel  preacher  that 
America  has  produced  in  this  century  has  gone  up  to  his  resplen- 
dent crown.  It  was  accorded  to  our  Moody  to  meet  and  influence 
more  men  and  women  than  any  other  man  in  modern  times.  Spur- 
geon,  in  his  fearless  way,  spoke  once  a  week,  but  Moody  spoke 
seven  times  a  week — to  40,000  or  50,000  souls  in  a  week.  Our 
dear  brother  was  more  endeared  to  us  because  he  was  such  a 
thorough  typical  American.  He  had  tasted  of  the  soil,  and  smelt 
of  the  New  Eneland  fields. 


't>' 


Dr.   Cuyler  Compares   Moody  and  Lincoln 

"  If  I  were  called  on  to  name  the  two  most  typical  Americans 
of  the  century-men  who  have  risen  from  obscurity  to  world- 
wide renown — the  one  a  brilliant  statesman  and  the  other  a 
model  preacher — I  should  not  hesitate  to  name  Abraham  Lincoln 
and  Dwight  L.  Moody.  When  a  nation's  life  is  to  be  pre- 
served and  its  liberties  maintained,  Almighty  God  calls  a  poor 
boy  from  the  log  cabin  in  Kentucky  ;  cradles  him  in  the  school  of 
hardship  and  gives  him  the  Great  West  for  his  only  university, 
and  then  annoints  him  to  lead  us  through  a  sea  of  blood  to  the 
Canaan  of  freedom.  In  like  manner  God  called  the  humble 
farmer  boy  from  the  banks  of  the  Connecticut,  gave  him  as  his 
education  only  one  book — the  book  which  schooled  him  with  the 
spirit  of  Jesus  Christ — and  then  sent  him  out  as  a  herald  of  salva- 
tion, Lincoln  and  Moody  were  alike  in  the  gift  of  a  remarkable 
common  sense.  Neither  one  of  them  ever  committed  a  serious 
mistake.  They  were  alike  in  being  masters  of  simple,  strong, 
Anglo-Saxon  speech,  the  language  of  the  Bible  and  of  Bunyan, 
the  language  of  the  plain  people.  Lincoln's  heart  gushed  out  in 
sympathy  to  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  men  and  made  him  the 
best  loved  man  in  American  history.     Moody's  big  loving  heart. 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  469 

fired  with  a  love  of  Jesus  Christ,  made  him  a  master  of  human 
emotions,  touching  the  fount  of  tears  in  thousands  of  hearts,  and 
often  bringing  weeping  multitudes  before  his  pulpit.  Finally, 
Lincoln,  the  liberator,  went  up  to  his  martyred  crown,  holding  the 
shattered  manacles  in  his  hand.  Moody,  the  liberator,  the  liber- 
ator of  immortal  souls,  fell  the  other  day  as  a  martyr  from  over- 
whelming work — went  to  be  greeted  at  the  gates  of  glory  by  the 
thousands  he  had  led  from  the  cross  to  the  crown. 

"Ere  I  take  my  seat,  let  me  say  what  may  not  be  known  to  all 
of  you.  On  the  Sabbath  before  our  brother  started  for  Kansas 
City  he  delivered  his  last  sermon  in  Nev^  York  in  yonder  Fifth 
Avenue  Presbyterian  Church.  In  that  discourse,  as  if  already  the 
preliminary  shadow  was  falling,  he  uttered  this  wonderful  sentence  : 
'You  may  read  in  the  papers  that  Moody  is  dead  !  It  will  not  be 
so  !     God  has  oriven  me  the  crift  of  life  everlasting-.' 

"Thank  God,  Moody  is  alive!  Moody  lives!  His  spirit  is 
to-day  in  this  hall  where  he  lifted  up  Jesus.  I  hear  that  trumpet 
voice  calling  on  the  pastors  and  churches  of  New  York  to  seek  the 
seat  of  prayer,  the  baptism  of  fire,  that  shall  kindle  this  city  and  set, 
perhaps,  the  nation  aflame. 

"  One  other  message  and  I  am  done.  Our  beloved  brother 
who  has  just  left  us  said  :  '  Five  and  twenty  years  ago,  in  my 
native  village  of  Northfield,  I  planted  two  Christian  schools  for 
the  training  of  boys  and  maidens  in  Christian  living  and  consecra- 
tion as  teachers  and  missionaries  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  bequeath  as 
my  legacy  those  training  schools  for  Jesus  to  the  churches  of 
America,  and  I  only  ask,  I  only  ask  that  visitors  to  the  beautiful 
native  village  where  I  shall  slumbej*  on  consecrated  ground,  when 
they  go  there  shall  not  be  pained  b}^  the  melancholy  sight  of  the 
ruins  of  these  schools,  but  rather  that  they  shall  be  rejoiced  by 
seeing  them  as  two  glorious  lighthouses  of  the  Lord  beaming  out 


^70  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

truth   and    kindness    over    the   world,'     My   beloved    brother,    the 

answer  of  the  Churches  of  God  in  America  will  be  :   '  We  will !  We 

will  !     We   will   perpetuate  those  training    schools    of    Jesus   as   a 

splendid,   magnificent,   fervent   memorial   of   our    beloved    Dwight 

Lyman  Moody.'  " 

Mr.   R.   F.   Cutting's  Remarks 

The  next  speaker  was  Mr.  Robert  Fulton  Cutting.  He  said  :  i 
"  It  is  a  good  many  years  since  I  last  saw  Mr.  Moody,  in  his  own 
home,  surrounded  by  his  family,  and  I  have  been  a  great  deal 
richer  man  since  I  had  that  experience.  I  do  not  know  any  man 
who  touched  me  more  than  he  did.  He  lacked  many  of  those 
elements  of  eloquence  which  go  to  make  up  a  great  public  speaker. 
He  did  not  have  much  of  poetic  fire,  glowing  rhetoric,  or  elocu- 
tionary cadence,  but  his  manner  was  so  direct,  so  straightforward, 
so  honest,  that  he  seemed  to  speak  to  everything  human  in  his 
audience — everything  that  was  righteous.  He  seemed  to  know 
mankind  as  very  few  people  do.  And  he  came  to  this  knowledge 
not  by  exhaustive  analysis,  not  by  psychological  formulae,  but  he 
seemed  to  be  able  to  see  into  a  man's  heart  because  of  the 
transparency  of  his  own  nature  ;  because  he  was  so  unconsciously 
honest,  so  perfectly  frank,  so  courteous,  that  men  and  women 
showed  to  him  what  they  would  not  show  to  others,  because  they 
could  not  hide  it  from  him.  He  knew  mankind,  he  knew  what 
human  life  was,  and  the  brilliancy  of  his  own  work  shone  through 
and  through  them. 

"  I  was  especially  impressed  at  the  Northfield  conference  by 
one  incident.  Mr.  Moody  had  been  speaking  at  one  of  the  meet- 
ings, and  had  gone  to  one  of  the  rooms.  Mr.  Sankey,  who  will 
probably  remember  the  incident,  gave  out  as  one  of  the  hymns — 
one,  I  think,  that  belongs  to  the  old  Gospel  Hymn  Book  No.  2, — *I 
feel  like  singing  all  the  time.'   '  I  only  give  that  hymn  out  because 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  471 

Mr.  Moody  has  left  the  room ',  he  said.  '  He  won't  let  me  sing  that 
hymn  ;  he  does  not  believe  in  singing  all  the  time.'  So  ifwas  that  Mr. 
Moody  knew  perfectly  well  that  the  men  or  women  whose  lives  were 
made  up  of  uninterrupted  singing  knew  very  little  of  the  gravity  of 
human  life,  and  was  waiting  for  experiences  which  would  temporarily 
chill  them.  He  gained  access  to  the  hearts  of  men  and  women 
because  he  dealt  with  them  in  a  common-sense  way.  That  is  the 
way  he  completely  disarmed  all  criticism.  No  man  who  has 
played  so  large  a  part  on  the  stage  of  our  religious  history  was  so 
far  above  criticism  as  was  Mr.  Moody.  He  knew  only  one  doc- 
trine— that  '  God  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  his  only  begot- 
ten Son  that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him  should  not  perish  but 
have  eternal  life.'  He  knew  only  one  heretic  in  the  world,  and 
that  was  the  unconverted  man  or  woman.  Every  man  with  the 
love  of  God  in  his  heart  was  at  home  with  him.  In  the  midst 
of  all  his  successes,  what  a  wonderful  testimony  it  was  to  that 
man's  greatness  that  he  never  seemed  to  have  any  perception 
of  himself.  Like  the  great  master,  Michael  Angelo,  he  always 
so  arranged  the  lights  in  his  life  that  his  own  shadow  should 
not  fall  upon  his  work.  He  did  not  know  himself.  He  knew 
his  field ;  he  knew  his  God ;  but  he  did  not  know  himself, — 
because  he  forgot  himself  when  he  first  made  up  his  mind  what  his 
life  work  was  to  be.    That  was  the  source  of  his  power. 

"  We  are  going  now  to  lay  our  little  tributes  upon  his  tomb. 
If  he  is  gone  out  of  our  natural  life,  he  has  not  gone  out  of  our 
eternal  memories.  What  he  has  done  for  us  in  making  us  richer, 
we  will  endeavor,  in  our  way,  to  do  for  others  also." 

The  Rev.  Dr.  David  J.  Burrell,  of  the  Marble  Collegiate 
Church,  was  the  next  speaker.      His  words  were  : 

"  A  good  man  has  gone  and  we  cannot  be  sorry.  We  cannot 
repeat  the    liturgy  of   death,  '  Man   that  is  born    of  woman    is   of 


473  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

few  days  and  full  of  trouble  ;  he  cometh  up  as  a  flower  and  is  cut 
down.'  We  are  saying,  '  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  Soul,  and  all  that  is 
within  me  bless  His  Holy  Name.  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  Soul,  and 
forget  not  all  His  benefits.'  It  Avas  a  wonderful  death,  was  it  not  ? 
'  Earth  is  receding  ;  Heaven  is  opening;  God  is  calling.'  Was  he 
thinking  of  the  poet's  words  : 

"  'The  world  recedes  ;  it  disappears  ; 

Heaven  opens  on  mine  eyes ;  mine  ears 
With  sounds  serapliic  ring  ? 
Lend,  lend  your  wings  !   I  mount  !  I  fly  ! 
O  grave  where  is  thy  victory, 

O  death,  where  is  thy  sting  ? ' 

"  It  should  have  been  a  wonderful  death,  for  it  was  a  wonderful 
life  that  went  before  it.  As  I  have  been  sitting  here,  the  words  that 
Dr.  Pierson  read  out  of  Moody's  book  have  been  hammering  at  my 
heart,  '  One  thingf  I  do  ;  one  thinor  I  do.'  This  was  the  domina- 
ting  power  in  Mr.  Moody's  life,  an  absolute  singleness  of  purpose. 
He  looked  into  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  came  into  the  world 
to  do  one  thine  ;  and,  followino-  the  Master's  text,  he  said,  '  This 
one  thinof  I  also  do.' 

"  I  met  Mr.  Moody  when  I  was  a  Theological  student,  thirty- 
one  years  ago,  in  Chicago.  I  roomed  in  Farwell  Hall,  in  which 
Mr.  Moody  preached,  and  his  apartments  were  on  the  floor  below 
me.  The  Hall  took  fire  one  morning,  and  burned  slowly  but 
surely  through  the  forenoon.  I  busied  myself  in  removing  per- 
sonal effects  and  otherwise,  until  at  last,  driven  out,  I  found  myself 
coatless  and  hatless  in  the  street.  A  cordon  had  formed  around  in 
front,  but  there  stood  Mr.  Moody  with  a  bundle  of  handbills 
under  his  arms  ;  he  called  me,  saying,  '  Take  these  and  distribute 
them.'  I  looked  at  the  bill.  It  read,  '  Our  Beautiful  House  is 
Burned  ;  The  Noon-day  Meeting  will  be  held  at  the  Clark  Street 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  473' 

Methodist  Church.'  I  asked,  *  Where  are  your  wife  and  chil- 
dren?' He  repHed,  'I  saw  them  safe.'  'And  your  personal 
effects?'  *  O,  never  mind  them,'  he  said,  '  Our  meeting  must  go 
on.'     This  was  the  spirit  of  the  man,  'One  thing  I  do.' 

'*  We  cannot  better  perpetuate  his  memory  than  by  copying  his 
enthusiasm.  I  mean  to  build  him  a  monument,  please  God,  in  my 
ministerial  life,  by  devoting  myself  most  earnestly  to  the  Master's 
work.  I  believe  I  shall  love  the  Bible  better,  because  he  loved  it 
so ;  I  believe  I  shall  honor  the  Holy  Ghost  more,  because  he 
honored  Him  so  ;  I  believe  I  shall  look  more  affectionately  upon 
the  Face  so  marred,  yet  so  divinely  beautiful,  because  he  loved 
it  so.  My  brethren  in  the  service  of  Christ,  if  we  revere  the 
memory  of  this  man,  let  us  do  the  one  great  thing  with  more 
earnestness  than  ever. 

"  'Time  worketh  ;  Let  me  work  too  ! 
Time  imdoeth  ;  Let  me  do  ! 
Busy  as  time  my  work  I'll  ply 
Till  I  rest  in  the  rest  of   Eternity. 

Sin  worketh  ;  Let  me  work  too  ! 
Sin  undoeth  ;  Let  me  do  ! 
Busy  as  sin  my  work  I'll  ply 
Till  I  rest  in  the  rest  of  Eternity  ! 

Death  worketh  ;  Let  me  work  too  ! 
Death  undoeth  ;  Let  me  do  ! 
Busy  as  death  my  work  I'll  ply 
Till  I  rest  in  the  rest  of  Eternity.'  " 

Dr.   Dixon's    Eloquent  Tribute 

The  Rev.  A.  C.  Dixon,  who  for  years  had  been  close  to  Mr. 
Moody,  was  the  next  speaker.      He  said  : 

"  There  was  no  need  that  D.  L.  Moody  should  ever  perform  a 
miracle.      He  was  a  miracle.     Miracle  is  God  at  work ;  and  God 


474  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

Almighty  worked  through  Dwight  L.  Moody,  who  showed  to  the 
world,  as  it  seems  to  me  no  other  man  has  shown  in  this  generation, 
the  difference  between  influence  and  power.  He  began  without  in- 
fluence ;  he  became  influential  through  power.  He  did  not  magnify 
the  influences  of  power  and  of  money  and  of  organization,  education 
and  position  ;  but  his  trust  was  in  God,  and  the  power  of  Moody's 
life  Was  God  Himself  at  work.  Jesus  was  not  a  man  of  influence  ;^ 
He  made  Himself  of  no  reputation  but  of  power.  Paul  and  Silas 
did  not  have  enough  influence  to  keep  out  of  jail,  but  they  had 
power  enough  after  they  were  in  jail  to  shake  the  doors  open  and 
walk  out ;  and  Moody  was  gifted  with  the  power  that  could  shake 
the  doors  open.  I  always  felt  when  I  left  Moody,  not  like  praising 
Moody,  but  like  praising  God.  It  seemed  to  me  that  I  could  feel 
and  see  the  throbbing  of  God,  of  God's  love,  God's  sympathy, 
God's  great-heartedness,  as  I  came  in  contact  with  this  wonderful 
man.  He  incarnated  those  words  :  '  God  is  able  ;  God  is  powerful, 
all  powerful.'  And  God  did  mighty  works  through  Moody  because 
of  his  belief.  He  enabled  God — I  speak  it  reverently.  Omnipo- 
tence stood  helpless  because  of  unbelief  ;  but  God  worked  through 
Moody  because  he  believed.  I  saw  some  time  ago  a  great  steam- 
engine,  throbbing  with  power,  but  it  could  do  nothing  because  a 
bolt  was  broken  and  the  power  was  cut  off.  Moody  furnished  the 
bolt  ;  he  linked  himself  with  Almighty  God,  and  God  worked 
through  him  because  he  trusted  in  His  word  and  in  His  Spirit  and 
in  His  Son. 

"The  life  work  of  our  friend  was  so  simple.  He  had  a  heart 
that  took  him  into  the  great  assemblies,  into  the  great  cities,  the 
great  countries  and  the  great  world,  making  not  only  a  sphere  but 
an  atmosphere  for  Jesus.  We  speak  of  the  modesty  and  humility  of 
Moody ;  and  the  philosophy  of  his  humility,  I  am  impressed,  was 
this  :   He  always  stood  in  the  presence  of  some  great  undertaking, 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  475 

some  wonderful  unfinished  work  of  God,  and  the  work  before  him 
was  so  big  that  he  could  hardly  see  Moody ;  he  could  simply  see 
the  work  to  be  done  and  the  God  that  could  do  it,  and  he  felt  hon- 
ored in  being  the  instrument  of  God  in  its  execution.  Brethren, 
he  always  considered  himself  as  the  mere  instrument  of  God,  and 
he  never  thought  to  take  any  of  the  glory  of  his  work  to  himself. 
I  am  afraid  that  many  of  us  are  too  well  satisfied  ;  we  get  puffed  up 
with  vanity  and  pride,  with  the  little  bit  that  we  have  done  ;  we  have 
not  undertaken  enough  for  God.  Moody  fought  for  evangelization 
of  the  cities  and  of  the  world,  and  if  God  will  lift  us  unto  his  feet 
and  just  let  us  see  Him  as  Moody  saw  Him,  we  shall  be  humiliated, 
expecting  a  blessing  from  Him. 

"  I  believe  in  the  educational  work  established  by  Mr.  Moody. 
God  prosper  the  schools  !  May  God  lead  some  of  the  millionaires 
to  lay  millions  upon  that  altar,  and  do  it  quickly,  the  more  quickly 
the  better  for  the  glory  of  God.  But  education  with  Mr.  Moody 
was  the  result  of  evangelism,  and  not  evangelism  the  result  of 
education.  Education  was  an  incident  of  his  life,  and  education 
was  established  through  his  evangelism  ;  and  my  prayer  is  that 
Moody  may  be  projected  into  the  future,  and  that  those  schools 
may  be  supported  by  evangelism.  Not  only  by  wealthy  men 
giving  their  millions,  but  by  pastors  praying  for  them,  do  I  hope 
that  this  two-fold  work  of  Moody's  will  be  continued  until  we  shall 
meet  him  in  glory. 

"'Within  the  next  twelve  months,'  if  Moody  were  standing 
on  this  platform,  I  believe  he  would  say,  '  Within  the  next  twelve 
months  we  shall  preach  the  Gospel  to  every  creature  in  Greater 
New  York.'  Let  that  be  the  watch-word  for  1900  !  The  politicians 
can  reach  all  the  voters  in  three  months,  and  I  believe  that  Chris- 
tian people  can  reach  every  sinner  in  Greater  New  York  within 
the  next  twelve  months.     We  can  bring  the  Gospel  to  the  people 


476  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

in  the  home  and  on  the  street — -the  Word  of  God  Himself — and 
the  work  of  the  Church  will  make  God  wake  them  up.  Let  us 
bring  the  Gospel  to  the  people  everywhere — in  the  homes,  in  the 
churches,  in  the  theatres,  on  the  streets.  If  we  are  to  perpetuate 
Moody's  work,  it  will  be  by  taking  Christ  into  the  homes  and  the 
hearts  of  the  people. 

"  Remember  the  Word  of  God  to  Joshua,  the  man  who  was  to 
meet  danger :  '  Be  strong  and  of  good  courage  ; '  and  it  needs 
courage  to  meet  swords  and  bullets.  Remember  God's  words  to 
Solomon,  the  man  who  was  to  meet  difficulties  in  building  the 
temple :  '  Be  strong  and  of  good  courage  ;'  and  it  takes  a  finer  fibre 
of  courage  to  meet  obstacles  than  to  meet  bullets,  it  takes  more 
real  bravery  to  overcome  the  obstacles  that  beset  the  Christian's 
path  than  to  climb  San  Juan  Hill  or  storm  Manila  or  Santiago;  it 
takes  more  than  courage  to  meet  the  obstacles  and  labor  of  carry- 
ing the  Gospel  to  the  millions.  Moody  never  faltered  under 
difficulty,  because  he  believed  his  God  was  equal  to  any  emergency. 
Listen  to  these  words  of  God,  '  Moses,  my  servant,  is  dead  ;  arise 
therefore  and  pass  over  Jordan.' 

"  God  help  us  to  carry  on  the  work  that  he  laid  down  and  do 
it  in  the  strength  of  his  Almighty  God  !" 

The   Characterization  by    Dr.    Buckley 

The  Rev.  Dr.  J.  M.  Buckley  then  spoke  as  follows  : 
"  We  go  to  the  Bible  for  sublime  passages,  and  those  who 
understand  the  great  book  go  to  it  for  strange  passages.  The 
strangest  memorial  note  in  all  literature  is  to  be  found  in  the  Bible 
concerning  a  certain  king  who  reigned  in  Israel  eight  years,  and  the 
epitaph  proposed  for  him  is  this,  '  and  he  departed  without  being 
desired.' 


s 


MR.   MOODY'S  BIBLE  showing  marks  and  annotations  by  the  evangelist. 


MR.   MOODY'S  DOG.     Everyone  who  saw  the  evangelist  on  the  streets  of  Northfield  during 
recent  years  will  remember  this  faithful  dog,  always  at  his  heels. 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  479 

"  What  a  contrast  between  such  a  career  and  that  which  has 
called  us  here  !  Our  friend  died  when  he  was  most  desired ; 
desired  to  maintain  those  wondrous  Bible  Conferences  ;  desired  as 
a  nucleus  of  undenominational  activity  ;  desired  to  sustain  those 
educational  institutions  which  he  had  founded  ;  desired  to  raise  up 
more  workers  imbued  with  his  spirit ;  desired  to  dart  to  and  fro 
through  the  country  to  awaken  communities,  to  snap  the  chains  of 
conventionalism,  to  elicit  and  evoke  the  tremendous  latent  forces  of 
the  Church,  and  to  unite  Christians  in  the  only  way  in  which  they 
can  ever  be  united  ; — by  a  firm  and  unswerving  belief  in  the  funda- 
mental principles  of  the  Gospel  he  developed,  and  in  active,  soul- 
saving,  consecrated  labor.  At  this  hour  D.  L.  Moody  was  called 
away. 

"  To  attend  a  meeting  of  this  sort  sometimes  produces  sin- 
gular effects.  Persons  are  heated  by  the  Scriptures,  and  by  their 
own  rhetoric,  until  at  last  one  would  think  it  a  jubilation,  and  from 
a  great  memorial  meeting  in  this  city  a  gentleman  retired  saying, 
'  I  was  sad  when  I  went  there,  but  I  don't  know  now  that  it  makes 
any  great  difference.'  According  to  these  speeches,  God  is  going 
to  take  care  of  His  own  work.  The  fact  is  the  New  Testament 
never  teaches  that  we  should  not  be  sad.  On  the  contrary,  when 
Epaphroditus  was  sick,  St.  Paul  wrote  to  the  Philippians  and  told 
them  that  Epaphroditus  longed  after  them  because  they  had  heard 
that  he  had  been  sick.  And  the  Apostle  said,  '  indeed  he  was  sick, 
nigh  unto  death  ;  but  God  had  mercy  on  him,  and  not  on  him  only, 
but  on  me  also,  lest  I  should  have  sorrow  upon  sorrow.'  The  real 
feeling  is  midway  between  jubilation  and  the  sorrow  of  the  world 
that  worketh  death.  It  is  a  great  loss  ;  to  human  eyes  it  is  a  dread- 
ful and  in  a  certain  aspect  of  the  case  an  irreparable  loss. 

"  How  are  we  going  to  prove  that  any  preacher  has  the  Spirit 
of  God  ?     Will  oratorical  preaching,  will   pathetic  preaching,  will 


48o  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

persuasive  preaching  demonstrate^that  he  has  the  Spirit  ?  Is  the 
power  of  discerning  spirits  left  in  the  Church  ?  Did  not  some  of 
the  most  famous  evangeHsts  the  world  ever  saw  fall  into  the  very 
depths  of  iniquity  and  sin  ?  Did  not  the  author  of  that  wondrous 
hymn,  '  Come,  ye  sinners,  poor  and  needy',  spend  twelve  years  in 
the  most  dreadful  depth  of  depravity,  and  go  mourning  all  his  days 
after  he  emerged  from  it  ?  Have  we  not  in  our  day  known  men 
absolutely  to  renounce  the  doctrines  they  held  when  they  were 
most  prosperous  as  evangelists,  and  confess  with  brazen  face  that 
in  the  very  midst  of  their  greatest  efforts  and  success  they  did  not 
believe  what  they  were  supposed  to  believe  ?  How  then  shall  a 
man  prove  that  he  has  the  Spirit  of  God  ?  He  must  prove  it  by 
a  long  career,  by  a  spotless  reputation,  by  meeting  men  face  to  face 
as  well  as  upon  the  rostrum,  and  by  the  men  who  have  slept  with 
him,  and  traveled  with  him,  and  prayed  with  him,  and  suffered  in 
evil  report  as  well  as  in  good  report.  These  men  must  stand  up, 
and  be  able  to  declare  in  the  face  of  God,  and  in  the  presence  of 
men,  that  this  man  all  through  this  period  lived  as  he  professed, 
prayed  as  he  professed,  preached  as  he  professed,  denied  himself 
as  he  professed.  And  then,  if  God  gives  such  a  wondrous  death 
to  that  man  as  this,  we  have  evidence  probable  and  conclusive  that 
he  was  a  man  of  God. 

"  But,  my  brethren,  you  cannot  undertake  to  show  that  D.  L. 
Moody  did  just  what  any  other  man  could  do,  if  he  only  had 
enough  of  the  Spirit.  Could  God  do  as  much  by  Peter  in  the 
same  way  that  He  could  with  Paul  ?  What  kind  of  a  speech 
would  Peter  have  made  at  Mars  Hill  to  the  Epicureans  and  the 
Stoics  ?  He  would,  perhaps  unconsciously,  unless  a  special  miracle 
had  been  wrought,  have  gotten  himself  into  very  great  difficulty. 
He  did  it  on  several  occasions,  and  had  not  learned  better  until 
the  threshold  of  the  crucifixion,  when  he  smote  off  an  ear  in  the 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  481 

excess  of  ill-regulated  zeal.  The  fact  in  the  case  is  that  God  by 
nature  endowed  Mr.  Moody  in  an  astonishing  manner  with  regard 
to  his  mere  body.  There  was  a  man  in  Connecticut  who  loved 
and  adored  Mr.  Moody,  and  he  invariably  amused  himself  in  this 
way,  sitting  in  the  cars.  When  Mr.  Moody  came  in  he  would  say, 
'Do  you  know  him?  That  is  Huntington,  the  greatest  railroad 
man  in  this  country.'  Never  did  he  hear  one  word  of  question 
from  the  men  who  had  never  seen  Huntingfton.  At  other  times 
he  would  suggest  he  was  a  Western  Judge.  In  every  case  every 
man  seemed  to  think  it  exactly  right.  They  saw  that  tremendous 
head,  monster  chest,  prompt,  intense,  direct  action,  a  man  obviously 
born  to  command.  This  same  man  invariably  told  people  after- 
ward before  they  left  him,  for  he  was  a  Christian,  '  No,  that  is 
not  Mr,  Huntington  ;  it  is  Mr.  Moody  ;'  and  their  curiosity  was 
greatly  excited.  But  D.  L.  Moody  never  reminded  any  other  man 
of  another  man,  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  term.  All  the 
humility  of  Mr.  Moody  was  before  God.  He  never  was  humble  in 
his  dealings  with  Mr.  Sankey.  He  never  was  humble  in  his  deal- 
ings with  any  man  that  he  undertook  to  deal  with.  If  ever  there 
was  a  man  self-confident  under  God,  D.  L.  Moody  was  the  man. 

"  Physically  many  men  reminded  other  men  of  Mr.  Moody. 
That  undefinable  personality  that  will  not  show  in  a  photograph, 
and  cannot  be  painted  in  oil,  was  in  Mr.  Moody,  and  it  went  out  of 
his  eyes,  and  out  of  his  head.  He  came  up  to  me  one  day  in  a 
parlor  car,  and  struck  me  on  the  shoulder  and  said,  '  You  look 
about  the  same  as  you  did  when,' — and  he  mentioned  a  long  period 
of  time  that  need  not  be  repeated  here.  A  man  came  up  and  said, 
*  Who  was  that?'  Said  I,  'That  is  D.  L.  Moody.'  'I  thought,' 
said  the  stranger,  '  it  was  Henry  Wilson,'  and  there  was  a  very 
great  physical  resemblance  between  the  Vice-President  and  Mr. 
Moody. 


482  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

"  Then  this  man  had  what  is  seldom  found  in  men  inchned  to 
corpulence, — immense  activity.  He  was  more  active  than  the 
average  man  of  medium  size. 

"  He  could  improve,  and  that  was  one  of  his  glories.  Two 
hundred  years  from  now  the  extreme  higher  critics  will  be  trying 
to  prove  that  there  were  two  Moodys,  and  they  will  do  it  by 
getting  up  the  language  word  by  word,  and  sentence  by  sentence, 
that  Mr.  Moody  used  when  he  began  in  Chicago.  They  will  make 
a  parallel  of  that  with  the  highly  improved  style  of  his  later  years. 
Some  persons  say  Mr.  Moody  was  not  a  cultivated  orator.  Note 
that  passage  quoted  by  Drummond,  observe  that  when  in  London 
he  described  the  ascension  of  Elijah  several  parliamentary  orators 
arose  to  their  feet  and  looked  in  the  air  after  the  ascendine 
prophet.  Take  his  sublime  eulogy  of  Joseph  of  Arimathea, 
delivered  in  this  house  less  than  a  year  ago.  Not  far  from  yonder 
box  sat  a  bishop  noted  for  sound  judgment,  and  he  said,  '  That  is  a 
piece  of  work  any  man  might  be  proud  of.' 

"  Nearly  twenty-five  years  ago  the  gentleman  who  presides 
to-day  sat  on  the  platform  in  the  Hippodrome.  A  very  strange 
scene  took  place  in  the  City  of  New  York.  We  have  read  the 
Arabian  Nights'  entertainment,  we  remember  that  a  certain  Caliph 
used  to  go  about  in  disguise,  and  marvelous  are  the  extraordinary 
tales  told  of  him.  But  at  that  time  New  York  beheld  an  emperor, 
an  emperor  of  a  great  territory,  which  is  to  be  in  the  future  one  of 
the  greatest  empires  of  the  world,  unless  it  remains  permanently 
republican.  I  refer  to  Dom  Pedro,  the  Emperor  of  Brazil.  He 
went  on  the  platform  and  took  the  seat  vacated  by  Mr.  Dodge  and 
sat  there.  Two-thirds  of  the  audience  knew  who  he  was,  but  the 
man  of  the  occasion  was  Mr.  Moody,  and  he  was  preaching  then 
and  there.  What  did  he  do  ?  Did  he  exhibit  that  fawning  and 
obsequious  bow  that  many  persons  do  when  the  President  appears, 


MEMORIAL  SERVICES  483 

or  even  a  Secretary  of  State  ?  Mr.  Moody  never  referred  to  Dom 
Pedro,  but  he  introduced  into  the  midst  of  his  discourse  these 
words:  'What  will  you  do  with  Jesus?  What  will  you  do  vv^ith 
Jesus?  An  emperor  cannot  buy  Heaven,  but  he  can  have  it  as  a 
free  gift,'  and  after  he  said  that  he  paused,  and  Dom  Pedro  bowed 
his  assent,  and  afterwards  remarked  to  the  gentleman  who  wrote 
the  account,  '  That  is  a  man  to  be  heard  and  to  be  believed.' 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  a  personality.  That  personality  is  now 
invisible.  It  will  disappear.  You  and  I  will  remember  him,  and 
those  who  have  seen  him  will  remember  him,  but  we  belong  to  a 
vanishing  generation.  Who  can  go  through  Westminster  Abbey 
without  a  guide-book,  and  know  much  about  a  great  many  that  are 
there  ?  Very  few.  The  personality  of  Mr,  Moody  will  be  totally 
forgotten,  as  has  been  the  personality  to  a  large  extent  of  Jacob 
Knapp,  and  of  Charles  G,  Finney,  and  a  great  many  others  ;  to 
the  present  generation  they  are  but  names.  There  is  but  one  way 
to  prevent  the  personality  of  Moody  from  entirely  disappearing.  It 
is  by  the  perpetuation  of  those  schools,  and  the  maintenance  of  their 
spirit.  God  forbid  that  those  schools  should  ever  follow  in  the 
wake  of  Harvard  Divinity  School  and  of  some  others  !  Mr.  Moody 
had  his  prejudices,  but  I  heard  him  declare  that  he  would  fellow- 
ship with  everybody  who  believed  himself  a  sinner  and  trusted  in 
Christ.  '  But,'  said  he,  '  God  being  my  helper,  I  never  will  fellow- 
ship a  man  who  denies  the  Deity  of  my  God  and  Saviour,  Jesus 
Christ,  or  sneers  at  His  atonement.' 

"There  was  a  man  who  spent  his  life  in  traducing  the  Bible, 
in  caricaturing  the  ministry,  in  making  audiences  as  large  as  this, 
laugh  at  our  holy  faith.  That  man  boasted  that  he  would  have  his 
stenographer  with  him  when  he  died,  that  none  could  misrepresent 
his  last  words.  He  had  a  painless  death.  He  never  had  to  meet 
the  king  of  terrors.      No  man  whispered  in  his  ear,  'You  are  about 

26 


484  MEMORIAL  SERVICES 

to  die.  Does  your  faith  sustain  you  ?'  He  died  and  left  the  most 
deplorable  scene  of  unconsolable  grief  that  the  world  ever  saw. 
Our  Moody  was  told  that  he  must  die.  What  then  ?  O,  the 
blessing  of  the  manner  of  his  death  to  the  Church  !  God  showed,  I 
believe,  in  a  peculiar  way  for  the  Church  and  for  him  that 
'  Precious  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  is  the  death  of  his  saints.' 
There  is  something  worse  in  this  world  than  agnosticism,  something 
worse  than  blank  infidelity.  It  is  the  practical  effects  of  a  belief 
that  we  cannot  be  sure  of  the  future.  There  are  some  hopeless 
words  from  '  In  a  Persian  Garden',  that  I  heard  sung  with  sweeter 
voices  than  are  often  heard  in  the  sanctuary,  at  a  private  entertain- 
ment, and  at  the  close  a  young  lady  was  heard  to  say,  '  Well,  perhaps 
that  is  all  there  is  to  it.' 

"  There  were  those  in  the  time  of  Paul  who  said,  '  Let  us  eat, 
drink,  and  be  merry,  for  to-morrow  we  die.'  Ah,  if  there  were  no 
life  afterward  I  too  would  drink  anything  that  would  make  me 
oblivious  of  my  doom  !  But  listen  !  listen  !  listen  !  '  I  heard  a 
voice  from  Heaven  saying  to  me.  Write :  Blessed  are  the  dead 
which  die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth.  Yea,  saith  the  Spirit,  that 
they  may  rest  from  their  labors  and  their  works  do  follow  them.' 

"  Farewell,  beloved  brother  !  Farewell,  stalwart  friend  !  Fare- 
well, all  men's  friend  !  We  shall  see  thee  at  last,  but  not  in  the 
flesh  ;  for  didst  thou  not  thyself  say,  '  My  body  to  the  dust ,  my 
soul  to  the  God  who  gave  it.'  " 

At  the  conclusion  of  Dr.  Buckley's  remarks,  Mr.  Sankey  sang 
a  memorial  hymn,  written  by  him  for  the  occasion,  the  whole 
assemblage  joining  in  the  chorus.  The  ceremonies  were  then 
closed  with  the  benediction  by  the  Rev.  J.  Balcolm  Shaw. 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

Appreciations  by  Eminent  Friends 

THE    estimation   in    which    Mr.    Moody  was    held  by  his  00- 
workers,  and  others  who  knew  him,  will  testify  perhaps  most 
fittingly  to  his  wonderful  personality.      Many  of  the  follow- 
ing   tributes  were  written  in   response  to  inquiries  made  by   The 
Christian  Endeavor    World, 

"  He  was  a  convincing  example  of  the  priesthood  of  the 
people,  and  led  out  the  laity  into  fields  of  unsuspected  Christian 
usefulness.  Edwards,  Payson,  Caughey,  Inskip,  Moody :  the 
greatest  of  these  was  Moody." — Rev.  D.  H.  Moore,  D.  D,,  Cincin- 
nati, Ohio. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  a  man  of  the  utmost  sincerity,  clear  faith  and 
strong  constitution.  He  knew  men,  and  was  a  man  of  common 
sense.  He  was  a  preacher,  simple,  direct  and  interesting.  I 
believe  that  he  gave  a  strong  uplift  to  the  religious  life  of  America 
and  Great  Britain." —  William  Lawrence,  Protesta^it Episcopal  Bishop 
of  Massac Imsetts. 

"In  the  most  entire  and  utmost  way,  Mr.  Moody  exhibited  and 
lived  for  and  preached  Jesus  Christ  at  once  God  and  Brother.  His 
success  in  that  preaching  is  only  an  illustration  of  the  fact  that 
such  Gospel  appeals  to  and  meets  as  nothing  else  can,  the  needs  of 
the  human  heart.  His  last  words  were:  'The  earth  recedes, 
Heaven  opens.'  Those  may  be  our  last  words  also  if,  as  he  did, 
we  trust  and  serve  his  Lord,  who  is  at  once  Lord  and  Brother."— 
Rev.  Way  land  Hoyt,  D.  D.,  Philadelphia,  Pa, 

485 


486  APPRECIATIONS  B}    EMINEM!  FRIENDS 

"  In  Christ  ^ 

His  life  was  a  good  fight  of  faith. 
His  work  was  a  long  labor  of  love. 
His  death  was  a  full  triumph  of  hope. 
His  memory  is  a  strong  inspiration  to  service. 
His  reward  is  an  inheritance  of  glory 

With  Christ."  ^ 

— Rev.  Henry  Va7i  Dyke,  D.  D.  New  York,  N.  Y. 

"  He  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  greatest  evangelist  since  White- 
field,  and  since  the  Apostle  Paul  there  has  been  no  man  who  has 
preached  to  so  great  a  multitude  and  led  so  many  to  Christ.  To 
the  end  of  time  Mr.  Moody's  teachings  will  last.  The  simplicity 
of  his  words  went  direct  to  the  heart  of  common  men.  His  con- 
scientiousness, his  enthusiasm,  his  inspired  common  sense,  his  kind- 
ness— -all  made  him  especially  fitted  for  his  work." — Rev.  Newell 
Dwight  Hillis,  D.  D.,  Brookly7t,N.  Y. 

*'  He  was,  under  God,  the  prime  inspirer  and  director  of  the 
evangelistic  trend,  which  has  marked  the  last  third  of  the  nine- 
teenth century.  He  has  done  more  than  any  clergyman  or  layman 
of  his  generation  in  changing  the  style  and  method  of  the  pulpit 
and  in  making  it,  as  it  ought  to  be,  more  direct,  practical  and  sym- 
pathetic. To  say  that  Mr.  Moody  was  an  uneducated  man  is  wide 
of  the  mark.  He  was  well  educated,  although  self-educated, 
through  the  constant  use  of  all  the  varied  resources,  which  lay 
around  him,  for  thorough  and  continuous  preparation  for  his 
divinely  designated  mission." — Rev,  Robert  Hunter,  D.D.,  Philadel- 
phia, Pa. 

"  I  have  known  Mr.  Moody  for  twenty-five  years,  and  have 
met  him  on  many  occasions.  He  was  one  of  the  purest  and  truest 
men  I  ever  knew.     He  was  a  most  thoughtful  and  careful  student 


N 


REV.    F.   B.    MEYER,   OF  LONDON. 


APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS  489 

of  the  Bible.  He  was  a  great  friend  of  young  men,  and  his  influ- 
ence over  them  was  remarkable.  He  was  a  devoted  and  laborious 
worker,  and,  so  far  as  I  know,  the  money  he  received  nearly  all  went 
to  aid  poor  young  men  or  struggling  colleges  or  churches.  Mr. 
Moody  was  a  remarkable  reader  of  human  nature  and  seemed  intui- 
tively to  understand  how  to  apply  the  truth  to  men  in  keeping 
with  their  disposition  and  nature.  The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  has 
lost  one  of  the  most  effective  workers  it  ever  had  in  the  death  of 
Mr.  Moody."— 7?^e'.  /.  W.  Joyce,  D.D.,  LLD.,  Bishop  of  the  M.  E, 
Church. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  a  man  of  tender  compassion  and  unbounded 
sympathy,  of  deep  humility  and  abounding  charity,  of  tireless 
energy  and  unflagging  hope.  Faith  in  a  God  who  answers  prayer 
and  who  can  save  the  most  hopeless,  faith  in  the  Bible  as  the  Word 
of  God  from  the  beginning  to  the  end,  faith  in  the  present  power 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  was  the  secret  of  his  strong,  beautiful  and  won- 
drous service." — jRev.  R.  A.  Torrey,  Chicago,  III. 

"  Mr.  Moody  has  taken  his  place  among  the  immortals.  In  his 
own  sphere  his  work  was  owned  by  God  as  truly  as  was  that  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon  in  his  sphere.  Mr.  Moody  gave  great  prominence  and 
power  to  the  work  of  the  laity.  He  emphasized  the  gentler  rather 
than  the  sterner  elements  of  the  Gospel.  His  ministry  was  one  of 
declaration  rather  than  one  of  argumentation.  His  educational 
work  is  the  most  enduring  feature  of  his  unique  service  and  his 
consecrated  life." — Rev.  R.  S.  Mac  Arthur,  D.D.,  New  York ,  N.  Y. 

"In  the  death  of  Mr.  Moody,  the  world  suffers  a  loss  which 
no  other  man's  services,  however  invaluable,  can  neutralize.  His 
speculations  concerning  things  beyond  this  earth  were  not  pecu- 
liarly his  and  were  not  the  measure  of  his  great  worth.  His  value 
was  his  amazing  gift  for  identifying  the  whole  human  side  of  hia 
religion  with  the  whole  human  side  of  his  life,  and  for  kindling 


^oo 


APPRECIATIONS  BY  EMINENT  FRIENDS 


other  souls  from  the  fires  of  his'  mighty  devotion.  May  these 
things  Hve  after  him  forever." — George  W,  Cable,  Northampton, 
Mass. 

"  My  heart  aches  over  the  loss  that  comes  to  us  in  the  death 
of  Mr.  Moody.  He  has  always  been  an  inspiration  to  me  in  prepar- 
ing hymns  for  gospel  work ;  not  that  he  was  a  musician  or  claimed 
to  be,  but  I  early  learned  to  prize  his  judgment  as  to  the  value  and 
usefulness  of  a  hymn  for  the  work.  What  moved  him  was  sure  to 
move  others,  and  what  failed  to  do  so  could  be  safely  omitted.  1 
have  esteemed  it  one  of  my  highest  privileges  to  share  in  preparing 
songs  for  his  work,  and,  now  that  he  has  gone,  how  lonely  it 
seems!" — James  McGranahan,  Kinsman,  O. 

"  D.  L.  Moody  believed  the  Bible  to  be  the  Word  of  God,  and 
preached  its  truths  with  the  authority  of  a  messenger  intrusted 
with  a  revelation.  He  believed  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  depended 
upon  Him  for  power.  His  love  for  Jesus  was  a  passion  ;  and  he 
loved  people,  good  and  bad,  because  Jesus  loved  them. 

"  In  the  inner  circle  of  his  family  and  intimate  friends  he  was 
as  tender  as  a  child,  or  gentle  as  a  woman,  at  times  as  frolicsome  as 
a  boy,  and  as  cheerful  as  morning  sunshine.  There  was  in  him  a 
rare  union  of  spiritual  fervor  and  common  sense.  His  enthusiasm 
never  ran  away  with  his  judgment.  He  was  truly  great  in  the 
Christlike  sense  of  ministry  to  others." — Rev.  A.  C.  Dixon,  D.  Z?., 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

"  The  rounded  fulness  of  Dwight  L.  Moody's  life  is  answer  to 
the  oft-repeated  question.  Is  life  worth  living?  It  is  not  worth 
living  if  lived  for  self  ;  it  is  if  lived  for  others.  And,  when  I  think 
of  the  countless  many  who  have  been  lifted  to  higher  things  by  his 
earnest  words  and  self-denying  life,  I  am  sure  that  his  life  was 
worth  living.     Only  the  recording  angel  can  tell   the  number  of 


APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS  491 

those  who,  when  the  news  of  his  death  was  telegraphed,  responded 
with  the  expression,  unrecorded  on  earth,  '  Thank  God  for  Dwight 
L.  Moody's  Hfe  ! ' 

"  His  end  was  peace.  His  message  to  all  is  service.  '  Whoso- 
ever will  be  chief  among  you  let  him  be  your  servant'  The  world 
needs  a  successor.  Who  will  he  be  ?  " — David  J.  Brewer,  Associate 
justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  Washington,  D .  C. 

"  He  preached  a  positive  Gospel  to  an  age  of  doubt,  and 
moved  the  popular  heart  and  life  as  no  other  man  of  the  age  has 
done,  unless  it  be  Charles  H.  Spurgeon.  The  great  preacher  was 
ever  true  to  the  Bible  doctrines  concerning  God,  sin,  punishment, 
repentance,  Heaven  and  hell  He  stood  firmly  for  the  divinity  of 
Christ  and  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures  and  the  authority  of 
the  Book  of  books.  He  was  a  large-hearted,  sympathetic,  noble, 
manly  man.  His  Gospel  was  full  of  sunshine  and  joy.  '  God  is 
love'  was  the  magnet  which  he  used  to  draw  men  to  Christ  and  a 
new  life.  His  power  was  due  to  his  positive  faith,  his  life  in  close 
touch  with  the  spirit  of  God,  his  rare  good  sense,  his  sympathy 
and  love  for  all  classes,  his  insight  into  human  nature  and  his 
ability  to  manage  men.  He  has  shown  what  one  can  be  and  do 
who  is  wholly  devoted  to  God  and  his  work." — Rev.  P.  H.  Swift,  D.D., 
Chicago,  III. 

"  Very  few  men  have  been  so  close  to  the  strength  and  weak- 
nesses of  humanity.  He  saw  and  dealt  with  all  classes — the  high 
and  the  low,  the  rich  and  the  poor — and  as  he  came  close  to  them 
they  also  were  drawn  close  to  him.  This  was  because  all  believed 
in  his  love  and  truth,  in  his  sincerity  and  absolute  unselfishness. 
This  was  never  shown  perhaps  to  a  greater  degree  than  in  the  early 
life  of  this  association,  when  full  of  faith,  hope  and  perseverance 
he  gave  to  this  organization  that  spiritualizing  force  which  is  to-day 
the  great  source  of  strength  and  vitality. 


493  APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS 

"  Two  of  my  childish  recollections  of  Sunday  are  of  sitting  in 
ones  of  the  pews  of  the  old  'spotted  church,'  as  it  was  called,  and 
going  with  my  father  to  the  mission  Sunday  school  in  North  Market 
Hall,  where  Mr.  Moody  was  the  chief  spirit.  I  remember  how  he 
inspired  me  with  confidence  as  a  child,  and  how  my  love  and 
respect  grew  with  the  passing  years." — J.  V,  Farwell,  Jr.,  Chicago,  III. 

"  Any  tribute  I  might  give  to  the  memory  of  Mr.  Moody 
would  be  largely  influenced  by  personal  affection  as  well  as  admira- 
tion, for  during  the  well-nigh  quarter  of  a  century  I  have  been 
associated  with  him  and  his  work,  both  my  love  and  my  admiration 
for  him  have  grown  with  the  passing  years,  and  his  taking  away 
therefore  comes  as  a  personal  grief. 

"He  combined  in  a  most  extraordinary  degree  great  strength 
and  force  of  character  with  great  sympathy  and  tenderness  of 
heart,  and  with  these  a  most  generous  nature,  always  considering 
the  welfare  of  others  rather  than  his  own  comfort  and  happiness. 

"  It  may  be  truly  said  of  him  that  '  a  prince  in  Israel  has  fallen.' 
and  those  who  know  him  best  and  are  best  able  to  estimate  his  ser- 
vices to  his  generation  will  say,  what  they  believe  time  will  reveal 
to  all,  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  the  century 
now  closing."— George  C.  Sleddins,  Brooklyn,  N.  V, 

"  The  lines  along  which  he  won  success  are  worthy  of  very  care- 
ful attention.  First,  his  life  was  a  constructive  force.  He  was  in  the 
world  to  build  up,  construct,  to  save.  He  could  say,  with  Christ  : 
*I  am  come  not  to  destroy  men's  lives,  but  to  save  them.'  He 
dealt  with  the  positive,  the  known   and  settled  in  religion. 

"  Second,  he  was  thoroughly  sincere.  He  believed  his  messsage 
to  be  absolutely  true.  There  was  no  doubt  in  his  heart,  consequently 
none  found  expression  on  his  lips.  He  was  evidently  so  honest,  so 
true,  outspoken  and  frank  that  all  men  were  convinced  that  he 


APPRECIATIONS  BY  EMINENT  FRIENDS  493 

believed  through  and  through  every  word  he  preached,  and  that  he 
loved  his  fellow-men  and  desired  their  salvation  above  everything 
else  ;  and  that  he  was  in  the  work,  not  to  satisfy  a  selfish  ambition, 
or  for  ease  or  fame,  but  because  from  conviction  he  had  to  be 
there. 

"  The  next  element  of  power  in  Moody  was  a  childlike  simpli- 
city that  was  marvellous.  He  was  a  man  of  remarkable  wisdom, 
but  there  was  no  cunning  in  him.  He  was  as  absolutely  free  from 
duplicity  as  a  man  can  be." — Rev.  Charles  C.  Earle,  Boston,  Mass. 

"  His  life  was  spent  for  Jesus  Christ,  his  Master.  Self  was 
kept  back,  while  Christian  power  within  was  his  guide. 

"  God  chose  Moody,  I  have  no  doubt,  because  there  was  in 
his  nature  all  the  fire  and  enthusiam  that  would  break  out  and 
electrify  mankind.  He  was  anxious  for  the  souls  of  men.  Moody 
was  a  layman,  but  his  ministry  has  been  as  successful  as  any  man 
in  orders.  Others  have  saved  their  hundreds,  he  his  thousands. 
Moody  was  a  born  leader  and  was  one  of  the  greatest  generals  we 
have  ever  had.  If  he  had  been  a  soldier  he  would  have  stood  side 
by  side  with  Grant  or  Wellington. 

"  Moody  unified  humanity.  He  wanted  all  denominations  to 
get  together.  He  knew  that  the  way  to  have  a  union  was  not  by 
creeds  but  by  work.  Let  us  take  Moody's  idea  of  work  as  a  unify- 
ing force." — Rev.  George  C.  Lorimer,  D.D.,  Boston,  Mass. 

"  Dwight  L.  Moody  was  as  undeniably  the  most  extraordinary 
Gospel  preacher  that  America  has  produced  in  this  century  as 
'Spurgeon  was  the  most  extraordinary  that  Britain  has  produced. 
Both  had  all  Christendom  for  their  congregations.  I  am  glad  that, 
like  Abraham  Lincoln,  he  never  went  to  any  college  ;  both  formed 
their  own  racy  Saxon  styles  for  themselves. 

"  With  my  beloved  Brother  Moody  I  had  much  personal  inti- 
jmacy  for  twenty-eight  years.      He  delivered  his  first  Bible  readings 


494  APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS 

in  our  little  mission  chapel  in  the  winter  of  1872.  A  few  months 
later,  when  I  was  in  London,  he  came  into  my  room  one  day  and 
said,  '  They  want  me  to  stay  and  preach  here  ;  what  shall  I  do  ? ' 
My  quick  answer  was,  '  Come'  He  went  with  Mr.  Sankey,  and 
thus  began  his  world-wide  career  in  Britain. 

"  One  of  his  last  sermons  was  delivered  from  my  old  pulpit 
here  a  few  weeks  ago.  I  said  to  him,  '  Last  night  you  were  at  your 
best;  you  were  not  talking  to  Christians,  but  calling  the  unconverted 
to  Jesus  ;  stick  to  that  as  long  as  you  live.'  Who  will  be  the  Elisha 
to  follow  our  translated  Elijah  ?" — Rev.  Theodore  L.  Cuyler,  D.D., 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 

Dwight  L.  Moody,  the  most  divinely  ordained  Christian  evan- 
gelist of  the  nineteenth  century,  sleeps  well.  He  was  girt  with 
greatness  all  around.  A  great  intellect  was  his.  For,  although 
unlearned  in  the  classics  and  sciences,  he  was  deeply  schooled  in 
the  science  of  God  and  of  His  Son  Jesus  Christ,  whom  to  know 
aright  is  life  eternal.  Other  knowledges  than  this  pass  away,  and 
are  liable  to  puff  up  while  they  last. 

"  Mr.  Moody's  greatness  of  intellect  was  evidenced  by  the  fact 
that  his  sermons  repeated  a  thousand  and  more  times  were  always 
as  fresh  and  fascinating  as  they  were  at  first.  Only  extraordinary 
minds  can  speak  often  on  the  same  theme  without  becoming 
stale.  He  had  also  a  great  heart.  He  loved  everything  that  was 
good.  I  do  not  believe  he  ever  felt  hateful  toward  any  man.  Su- 
premely he  loved  Jesus  Christ  as  we  read  of  Him  in  the  Word. 
Mr.  Moody  was  as  certain  that  the  Holy  Scriptures,  as  we  have 
them,  were  fully  inspired  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  as  he  was  that  his 
pulse-beat  came  from  his  heart's  throb.  I  recall  no  other  one  in 
my  day  whose  departure  and  '  abundant  entrance '  above  have 
brought  Heaven  so  sensibly  near.      He  was  the  friend  of  the  whole 


APPRECIATIONS  BY  EMINENT  FRIENDS  495 

world,  and  all  lands  will  lament  the  loss  of  his  measureless  influ- 
ence for  human  welfare." — Rev.  John  Lindsay  Withrow,  D.  D., 
Boston,  Mass. 

"  Moody  and  I  met  for  the  first  time  in  Cleveland,  East  Ten- 
nessee. It  was  about  the  middle  of  April,  1864.  I  was  bringing- 
together  my  Fourth  Army  Corps.  Two  divisions  had  already 
arrived,  and  were  encamped  in  and  near  the  village.  Moody  was 
then  fresh  and  hearty,  full  of  enthusiasm  for  the  Master's  work. 
Our  soldiers  were  just  about  to  set  out  on  what  we  all  felt  promised 
a  hard  and  bloody  campaign,  and  I  think  were  especially  desirous 
of  strong  preaching.  Crowds  turned  out  to  hear  the  glad  tidings 
from  Moody's  lips.  He  showed  them  how  a  soldier  would  give  his 
heart  to  God.  His  preaching  was  direct  and  effective,  and  multi- 
tudes responded  with  a  confession  and  promise  to  follow  Christ. 

"  From  that  time  on  throughout  his  useful  career  I  have  had 
association  with  him.  On  the  steamer  Spree,  during  our  remark- 
able wreck  and  rescue,  I  was  with  him.  Who  could  have  held  up 
Christ  with  more  fearlessness  and  fidelity  than  he  did  then  to  over 
seven  hundred  passengers  ? 

"In  Chicago  he  acted  as  a  general,  and  I  became  his  subor- 
dinate during  the  World's  Fair.  Thousands  upon  thousands 
crowded  the  theatres,  tents,  halls,  churches,  and  other  public 
buildings,  by  his  provisions,  to  hear  the  simple  Gospel. 

"  His  work,  again,  in  our  war  with  Spain,  by  sending  evangeli- 
cal speakers  to  the  front,  whom  he  knew  the  soldiers  would  heed 
and  hear,  will  never  be  measured  by  us  who  were  mere  helpers. 
He  planned,  selected  his  messengers,  and  sent  them,  and  raised 
funds  to  ofive  to  our  soldiers  the  bread  of  life. 

"  With  tears  we  read  his  last  words  :  '  Heaven  opens.     Earth, 
recedes.     God  is  calling  me.'     But  O  the  triumph,  Stephen-like,  of 
such  a  departure." — General  O.  O.  Howard.,    Burling-lon,   Vt. 


496  APPRECIATIONS  BY  EMINENT  FRIENDS 

"  I  first  knew  Mr.  Moody  in  1857.  It  was  at  a  Sunday  school 
convention  at  a  Clark  Street  mission  in  Chicago  that  I  met  him. 
He  was  then  twenty-one  years  old,  and  was  just  entering  the  careef 
in  which  he  has  done  so  much  of  good.  He  was  a  stout,  robust, 
ardent  young  fellow,  shaking  hands  with  everybody  and  smiling  on 
them  in  his  cheerful  way,  and  the  smile  was  not  put  on  either — it 
was  genuine. 

"  I  crossed  the  continent  with  him  in  1871  to  attend  the  Cali- 
fornia Sunday  school  Convention,  and  again  in  1872  I  crossed  the 
Atlantic  in  his  company  when  he  first  went  to  London  to  hold 
evangelistic  services.  At  the  invitation  of  Mr.  Buley,  the  originator 
of  the  Dublin  tax  system,  and  a  philanthropic  gentleman  of  large 
means,  I  spent  several  days  at  Mr.  Buley's  home,  near  Dublin,  in 
company  with  Mr.  Moody,  and  there  I  became  better  acquainted 
v/ith  the  man  himself.     Since  then  I  have  met  him  many  times. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  bold,  courageous  in  his  advocacy  of  the 
thinofs  which  he  believed.  He  did  not  know  what  self-conscious- 
ness  was.  He  was  never  embarrassed — at  least  he  never  showed  it. 
He  had  unlimited  faith  in  the  divine  power  to  carry  him  through 
difficulties.  To  be  sure  he  sometimes  failed  in  his  plans — things 
did  not  go  just  as  he  wanted  them  to,  but  he  never  worried  over 
such  things.  Once  in  Ireland  I  made  fun  of  some  of  his  old  stories. 
I  said,  'See  here.  Moody,  I  have  heard  you  tell  these  same  stories  over 
and  over  again,  and  now  I'd  like  to  hear  some  new  ones.'  He 
looked  at  me  in  a  hurt  sort  of  way  and  with  tears  in  his  eyes  he 
said,  'Don't  say  that.  I  have  to  use  them.'  I  made  up  my  mind 
then  that  if  any  man  could  use  an  old  sword  as  effectively  as  D.  L. 
Moody  did,  I  would  never  criticise  him  for  it. 

"  While  fixed  in  his  own  faith,  he  was  liberal  towards  people  of 
diverse  faiths.  Once  in  Chicago  he  went  to  call  on  a  Roman  Catho- 
lic bishop.      '  I  have  talked  religion  with  almost    everybody,'  said 


APPRECIA  riONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS  499 

Moody,  'and  I  thought  I  would  come  and  talk  to  you. 
Besides,  some  of  your  boys  throw  stones  at  a  mission  over  on  the 
north  side.'  '  That's  very  wrong  in  them,' said  the  bishop,  'and  I 
will  tell  them  they  must  not  do  so.'  So  they  talked  about  religion 
for  a  while,  and  Moody^said,  '  You  pray,  bishop  ? '  '  Yes,  said  the 
bishop.'  '  Let's  pray  now,'  said  Moody,  and  they  did,  and  they 
parted  fast  friends.  Moody  had  largeness  of  soul  while  he  had 
positiveness  of  faith.      It  would  be  good  if  we  had  more  like  him. 

"  No  man  has  died  in  this  country  in  years  for  whom  there  has 
been  a  wider,  greater,  intenser  affection  than  there  was  for  Dwight 
L.  Moody."— 7?^z/.  JoJm  H.  Vincent,  D.D.,  L  L.  D.,  Bishop  of  the 
M.  E.  Church. 

"  I.  A  man  of  prayer — the  chief  secret  of  his  wisdom,  useful- 
ness and  success. 

"  2.  A  man  of  the  Book — unwearied  in  Biblical  study,  he  wore 
out  several  Bibles  ;  absorbed  the  very  atmosphere  as  well  as  the 
spiritual  texts  of  Scripture. 

"  3.  A  man  of  soundest  evangelical  faith,  with  a  mighty  grasp 
of  essentials  in  the  answer  to  the  question,  *  What  must  I  do  to 
be  saved  ? ' 

"  4.  A  man  of  extraordinary  practical  sagacity,  organizing 
power,  and  aptness  for  leadership.  He  used  to  say  that  it  was  bet- 
ter to  set  ten  men  at  work  than  to  do  yourself  the  work  of  ten  men. 
But  he  was  accustomed  to  do  both. 

"  5.  A  man  of  combined  courage  and  tenderness — bold  as  any 
lion,  tender  as  any  drop  of  dew. 

"  6.  A  man  endowed  by  his  unusually  powerful  but  balanced 
emotions  with  greatness  of  character,  and  by  his  caution  and  trench- 
ant common  sense  with  strategic  strength  of  character. 

"  7.  A  man  of  commanding  spiritual  manliness,  everywhere 
inspiring  confidence. 


500  APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS 

"  8.  A  man  of  remarkable  business  and  executive  talent,  he 
was  trusted  by  men  of  affairs. 

"  9.  A  man  working  easily  with  associates  whose  endowments 
filled  out  his  own,  like  Professor  Drummond  and  Mr.  Sankey,  the 
three  together  making  a  globe  of  capacities  and  aptitudes  for  the 
work  they  undertook. 

*'  10.  A  man  whose  career  has  been  a  spiritual  link  between 
England  and  America  and  all  English-speaking  lands.  Mr.  Moody 
has  had  no  equal  as  an  evangelist  since  President  Finney  was  laid  in 
his  grave  ;  and,  as  he  had  no  real  predecessor  like  himself,  so  he  is 
not  likely  to  have  a  successor.  The  Chicago  and  the  Northfield 
schools  ouofht  to  continue  throuo^h  his  sons  his  unmatched  work.  '  I 
wonder,'  said  a  young  minister  to  Professor  Park,  'that  Providence 
can  accomplish  so  much  through  a  man  of  only  moderate  endow- 
ments.' '  I  wish  to  speak  respectfully  of  Providence,'  said  Professor 
Park,  in  reply,  'but  I  call  Mr.  Moody  a  great  man.'  '  I  wish  I  had 
your  shoulders,'  said  Mr.  Gladstone.  '  I  wish  I  had  your  head,' 
said  Mr.  Moody,  in  answer." — Joseph  Cook,  L  L.  D.,  Boston,  Mass. 

"  My  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Moody  runs  back  forty  years  or 
more,  when  he  was  just  emerging  from  business  and  attracting 
attention  in  Chicago  by  his  resolute  and  resistless  efforts  in  religious 
work.  We  came  together  often.  My  house  was  his  home,  especi- 
ally after  the  Chicago  fire,  when  he  walked  out  from  his  flame-lit 
house  with  his  little  family,  saving  nothing  but  his  personal  Bible. 
We  were  together  several  months  at  the  time,  and  gathered  the 
money  mainly  in  New  England  for  the  rebuilding  of  the  Illinois 
Street  Mission.  Soon  after  the  fire  he  made  the  acquaintance  of 
Mr.  Sankey  and  founded  the  connection  with  which  work  in  Eng- 
land bep-an  at   York 

"Stretching  over  the  years  that  intervened,  up  to  Monday 
night,  November  13th  of  this  year,  I  have  enjoyed  the  inspiration  of 


APPRECIA  TIONS  B  V  EMINENT  FRIENDS  501 

his  life.  The  freshest  memory  I  have  of  him  is  the  night  above 
referred  to,  when  he  got  off  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad  train  to  keep 
an  appointment  he  had  made  with  me  by  telegraph,  to  spend  a  short 
time  between  trains  on  his  way  to  Kansas  City  for  his  last  meetings. 
I  remarked  that  same  night,  after  he  had  left  me,  how  heavy  a 
burden  seemed  to  rest  upon  his  heart  as  he  said  again  and  again : 
*  I  wish  that  I  mig^ht  be  moved  of  God  to  move  one  laree  Eastern 
city.  For  I  think  if  one  Eastern  city  could  be  thoroughly  revived, 
the  others  would  feel  the  influence  and  be  stirred  likewise.'  As  I 
looked  into  the  face  of  the  man,  whose  eyes  and  voice  were  full  of 
tears,  it  seemed  as  if  a  prophet  like  unto  Elijah  had  come  back 
again.  He  left  behind  him  that  night  his  comfortable  home  at 
Northfield  and  the  hospitality  which  so  many  friends  would  have 
been  glad  to  give  him  ;  laid  himself  down  in  a  sleeping-berth  of  a 
Pullman  car,  rattling  over  a  thousand  miles  to  Kansas  City ;  and 
rose  with  a  heavy  load  of  concern  for  the  kingdom  of  his  Master, 
and  under  the  weight  of  it  he  staggered  into  his  grave. 

"In  summing  up  the  distinctly  .great  things  of  this  great  cen- 
tury no  man  stands  out  more  prominently  who  has  spent  so  many 
continuous  years  in  superhuman  labor  for  the  public  good  as 
Dwight  L.  Moody,  the  Christian  American  layman.  Uncrowned, 
without  title  of  any  kind,  he  wears  the  first  honors  among  the  men 
who  loved  their  fellow  men." — The   Honorable  John    Wanamaker. 

"  In  D.  L.  Moody's  death  the  world  has  lost  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  men  of  the  century.  He  was  especially  distinguished 
for  his  great  devotion  to  the  cause  of  Christianity  and  of  preaching 
the  gospel  to  the  world.  To  me  one  of  his  most  distinguishing  charac- 
teristics was  his  consecrated  common  sense;  this,  together  with  a 
burning  zeal  for  winning  men  to  the  service  of  Christ,  and  his  ability  to 
do  the  work  of  ten  or  a  dozen  ordinary  men,  made  him  the  most 
successful  and  powerful  evangelist  of  his  day.    He  was  as  tender  as  a 


502  APPRECIA  TIONS  B  Y  EMINENT  FRIENDS 

woman,  and  yet  as  strong  and  brave  as  a  lion.  It  was  my  happy 
lot  to  have  been  with  him  for  oVer  twenty-eight  years,  in  our  own 
country  and  in  lands  beyond  the  sea ;  and  my  love  and  admira- 
tion for  him  increased  as  the  years  passed  by. 

"  The  news  of  his  death  came  as  a  great  shock,  as  we  had  been 
led  to  believe  that  he  was  slowly  gaining  ground  and  likely  to 
recover.  A  week  before  he  passed  away,  I  went  to  Northfield  to 
see  him,  and,  if  possible,  to  cheer  him  up,  but  found  him  so  weak 
and  nervous  that  I  decided  not  to  risk  an  interview,  lest  harm  might 
come  to  him ;  and  thus  I  failed  to  bid  him  good-by.  The  last  time 
I  saw  and  talked  with  Mr.  Moody  was  on  the  occasion  of  his  last 
visit  to  Dr.  John  Hall's  church  in  New  York  City.  We  spent  most  of 
that  Sabbath  day  together  talking  over  the  work  in  this  country,  and 
also  the  old  days  of  our  labors  together  across  the  sea.  He  seemed 
quite  happy  as  we  spoke  of  many  kind  friends  with  whom  we  had 
worked  in  Great  Britain  ;  but,  when  I  suggested  to  him  that  we 
might  go  once  more  to  that  country  and  hold  a  few  farewell  meet- 
ings, even  for  a  month  or  two,  an  expression  of  sadness  came  into 
his  face  such  as  I  had  seldom  seen  before,  as  he  said,  '  I  should  like 
to  go,  but  I  have  a  feeling  that  I  shall  not  live  to  cross  the  sea 
agrain.'  This  was  the  first  intimation  I  had  ever  received  that  he 
had  any  thought  that  he  might  not  be  with  us  long.  Little  did  I 
dream  that  I  was  having  my  last  talk  with  my  beloved  friend. 

"  It  is  a  pleasant  thought  that  Mr.  Moody's  body  has  been  laid 
to  rest  on  beautiful  '  Round  Top,'  where  he  has  spent  so  many  of 
the  happiest  hours  of  his  life  with  those  who  had  gathered  there  to 
hear  his  words  of  wisdom  and  grace.  This  spot  might  very  appro- 
priately be  called  Missionary  Hill,  for  it  is  believed  that  from  it 
more  young  men  and  women  have  decided  to  go  to  foreign  lands 
as  missionaries  than  from  any  other  single  spot  in  the  world." — Ira 
D.  Sankey ,  Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 


CHAPTER  XXXI 

Editorial  Estimates  of  His  Character. 

FEW  men  who  have  labored  In  the  field  of  evangelism  have 
won  their  deserved  recognition  so  completely  as  Mr.  Moody. 
Association  with  Mr.  Moody  very  quickly  convinced 
one  that  he  stood  pre-eminent  among  millions  for  his  earnestness, 
his  singleness  of  purpose,  his  unaffected  piety, — for  all  that  combina- 
tion of  principles  and  faculties  which  went  to  make  up  his  marvel- 
ous personality.  But  It  was  not  necessary  to  be  associated  with 
him  to  understand  in  some  measure  his  greatness.  His  work 
stands  as  a  monument  to  abilities  which  were  far  above  the  ordin- 
ary. Tens  of  thousands  of  men  cry  out,  "  He  helped  me  !"  Great 
buildings  in  various  parts  of  the  country  attest  his  foresight  in 
educational  matters,  and  the  practical  bent  of  his  mind. 

His  Greatness  Recognized  Everywhere 

These  visible  signs,  this  great  mass  of  cumulative  evidence  of 
his  greatness  it  is  impossible  to  Ignore.  Even  persons  who  were 
so  unfortunate  as  not  to  come  into  sympathy  with  his  efforts  can- 
not refuse  to  recognize  that  he  accomplished,  with  God's  help, 
great  things  for  the  betterment  of  mankind. 

Here,  then,  I  quote  a  few  extracts  from  editorials  in  various 
journals,  published  immediately  after  Mr.  Moody's  death.  The 
unanimity  of  opinion  is  remarkable.  I  doubt  very  much  if  any 
other  great  man  who  has  died  within  the  past  few  years  has 
received  after  his  death  such  a  shower  of  glad  tributes.  Those 
27  503 


504  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

who  have  followed  Mr.  Moody's  career  know  how  well  deserved 
the  tributes  are,  and  yet,  how  much  they  fall  short  of  recognizing 
the  full  measure  of  his  greatness. 

"  Mr.  Moody  undoubtedly  exerted  a  powerful  and  stimulating 
influence,  not  only  on  the  masses  but  on  many  of  those  who  were 
his  superiors  in  birth,  breeding  or  intellect." — The  London  Spectator, 

"  Wherever  Moody  spoke,  whether  in  his  own  country  or  in 
other  English-speaking  lands,  he  invariably  commanded  attention 
and  aroused  interest.  He  retained  to  the  very  last  of  his  public 
career  the  qualities  which  marked  him  from  the  outset  as  a  potent 
preacher." — The  Boston  Globe. 

"  Mr.  Moody's  claim  to  greatness  did  not  rest  on  his  intellectual 
strength,  but  on  his  goodness.  The  standard  of  his  character 
was  his  unqualified  and  immovable  faith  in  God  and  in  the  Bible. 
With  this  faith  he  combined  simplicity,  honesty,  sincerity,  humility, 
zeal,  an  abhorrence  of  egotism,  and  a  broad  charity." — The  Chicago 
Inter-  Ocean. 

"  Plis  going  leaves  a  great  void  behind,  and  the  world  will  seem 
lonely  without  him  to  many  in  every  land.  His  death  will  send  a 
wave  of  sincere  sorrow  over  millions  of  humanity  without  distinc- 
tion of  race,  creed  or  church.  Here  was  a  man  whose  soul  was 
pure  goodness,  who  was  ruled  by  loftier  motives  than  commonly 
govern  men,  whose  crown  was  Christlike  character,  and  men,  even 
irreligious  men,  instinctively  yield  his  memory  the  homage  of  their 
respect  and  reverence." — The  Presbyterian  Banner. 

**  Mr.  Moody's  life  teaches  us  that,  while  the  Church  needs  schol- 
ars, what  she  needs  most  of  all  is  the  impulse  of  Christian  devotion, 
that  force  which  compelled  St.  Paul,  and  has  compelled  a  thousand 
others  in  all  branches  of  the  Church  on  whom  was  laid  the  burden 
of  a  lost  world,  and  who  have  said,  '  Woe  is  me  if  I  preach  not  the 
Gospel.'     Mr.  Moody's  life  was  well   filled  out  with  work   nobly 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER  505 

accomplished,  and  his  death  was  the  fit  end  of  a  life  of  faith  and  ser- 
vice. His  memory  is  one  of  the  treasures  of  the  Christian  Church." 
—  The  hidependent. 

"  He  combined,  as  only  his  countrymen  can,  a  remarkably  keen 
business  intellio^ence  with  unflaofeinsf  enthusiasm.  To  the  last  he 
was  very  much  what  he  had  been  at  first ;  he  attempted  to  be  no 
more  or  better  ;  he  had  no  precise  "views"  or  "opinions"  about 
abtruse  matters  ;  and  probably  he  did  not  himself  know  very  well 
whether  he  was  a  Calvinist  or  not,  or  what  were  his  exact  theologi- 
cal bearings.  But  some  gift  within  him,  some  influence  which  he 
gave  out,  had  more  efficacy  with  certain  minds  in  certain  moods 
than  learning  or  eloquence  or  wit  or  pathos.  The  note  of  sincerity, 
the  unflinchingly  literal  way  in  which  he  took  things  which  others 
understood  symbolically  or  spiritually,  had  a  prodigious  effect  on 
people  who  wanted  to  see  and  hear  and  touch  with  their  hands ; 
people  by  no  means  necessarily  unintelligent." — Jhe  London  Times. 

"  According  to  common  agreement,  Mr,  Moody  was  not  a  great 
preacher,  so  far  as  greatness  depends  upon  and  is  manifested  in  exten- 
sive learning  or  lofty  flights  of  eloquence.  There  was  in  his  appeals 
to  sinners  that  mysterious  something  which  is  expressed  neither 
in  fine  phrases  nor  in  deep  philosophic  reflections.  His  magnetism 
and  convincinof  force  seem  to  have  lain  in  an  earnestness  which  left 
no  doubt,  and  which  affected  the  emotions  like  a  whirlwind.  By 
his  death  the  evangelization  movement  has  sustained  a  tremendous, 
perhaps  irreparable,  loss." — The  Baltimore  Herald. 

"  Chicago  at  one  time  claimed  this  mighty  preacher.  But  when 
he  died  the  whole  world  claimed  him,  so  wide  was  the  range  of  his 
evangelizing  activities.  He  stirred  the  hearts  of  the  two  great 
English-speaking  nations  with  his  militant  enthusiasm.  He  was  the 
field  marshal  of  the  hosts  that  cling  to  the  belief  that  the  Gospel 
itself  sufifices  for  all  the  spiritual  needs  of  humanity.     The  moral 


5d6  editorial  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

effect  of  his  life-work  upon  humanity  was  greater  than  that  of  any 
other  man  of  the  nineteenth  century." — The  Chicago  Times-Herald. 

"  Mr.  Moody's  strength  lay  in  his  simplicity  and  his  earnest- 
ness. He  has  been  described  as  magnetic,  but  simple  earnestness 
always  is  magnetic.  He  had  the  faculty  of  impressing  his  hearers 
with  his  absolute  and  undeviating  belief  in  the  truth  of  all  he  said. 
He  went  straight  to  the  point.  There  was  no  concession  to 
oratorical  effect  or  to  literary  polish.  He  said  nothing  simply 
because  it  sounded  well,  confining  himself  to  straightforward,  fear- 
less statements  of  what  he  believed  and  what  he  wanted  others  to 
believe,  and  such  apparent  absolute  faith  necessarily  carried  con- 
viction with  it." — The  Chicago  Evening  Post. 

"He  preached  the  Bible  only  and  he  lived  in  accordance  with 
his  preaching.  For  dogma,  he  cared  little  and  in  theology  he  was  a 
tyro.  He  never  preached  over  the  heads  of  his  audience.  The 
wayfarer,  though  a  fool,  could  not  fail  to  understand  him,  and  his 
earnestness  was  so  great  and  his  personal  appeal  so  forcible  that 
every  one  felt  Moody  was  talking  to  him  alone.  Such  honesty, 
sincerity  and  strength  of  purpose  could  not  but  have  their  reward, 
and  few  expounders  of  divine  truth  have  looked  upon  a  harvest  so 
rich  in  sheaves  as  his." — The  Chicago  Tribune. 

"  He  seemed  to  care  little  for  any  business  but  his  Master's. 
It  was  this  unflagging  energy,  this  faith  in  his  vocation,  that  brought 
him  the  confidence  of  men  to  whom  like  energy  and  faith  had 
brought  like  success  in  the  pursuit  of  wealth.  He  combined 
strangely  the  old  and  the  new.  He  was  perhaps  the  last  great 
revivalist  on  the  old  theoloeical  lines,  and  he  was  the  first  to  use 
wholly  modern  methods  of  publicity  and  appeal.  In  his  earnest- 
ness, his  unselfishness  and  his  sanctified  common  sense  he  was  one 
of  the  most  remarkable  men  of  our  generation,  for  whose  life  the 
world  has  been  better." — The  Churchman. 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER  507 

"What  was  the  secret  of  his  power?     First  and  foremost,  it 
was  his  intense  reHgious  earnestness.      He  knew  God.     The  vision 
of  the  Eternal  had  risen  in  his  soul.      This  deep  and  definite  experi 
ence  was  an  offset  to  his  lack  of  literary  culture.      It  made  him  pro 
foundly  anxious  to  do  something  for  the  souls  of  his  fellow-men 
Nature  had   endowed   him   also  with  a  sturdy  and  sober  common- 
sense.      He  cut  no  fantastic  tricks,  adopted  no  sensational  methods, 
avoided  even  the  appearance  of  smartness,  and  relied  solely  on  the 
truth  of  God  as  spoken  In  plain  and  simple  words  and  as  vivified 
by  the  Holy  Spirit." — The  NasJiville  Christian  Advocate. 

"  The  story  of  the  outward  life  of  such  a  man  as  Mr.  Moody 
can  be  condensed  after  a  fashion  Into  a  paragraph,  and  this  has  fre- 
quently been  done  ;  but  the  ramifications  of  its  influence  no  pen 
can  describe,  no  imagination  can  conceive.  Its  effect  upon  theology 
have  been  its  least  effects  ;  but  they  have  been  incalculable.  For 
though  Mr.  Moody  has  done  little  directly  to  change  the  theologi- 
cal thought  of  his  time,  he  has  done  a  great  deal  to  inspire  its 
religious  life  :  and  those  who  believe  that  theology  must  always  be 
the  outgrowth  of  religion  will  believe  that  his  theological  influence 
is  far  greater  and  far  more  wholesome,  because  more  vital,  than 
either  he  or  his  contemporaries  have  imagined." — The  Outlook. 

"In  nearly  all  the  great  cities  of  this  country  and  In  many  of 
the  towns  of  Great  Britain,  the  footsteps  of  Dwight  L.  Moody 
have  been  marked  by  the  upspringing  of  schools,  of  helpful 
agencies,  of  aids  to  raise  the  fallen,  to  lighten  the  dark  places,  to 
help  human  beings  in  all  that  makes  for  righteousness.  Although 
a  lay  evangelist,  he  was  a  great  preacher,  eloquent,  soul-stirring, 
convincing  and  ministering  to  others  the  faith  that  made  him  whole, 
but  great  as  he  was  as  a  preacher,  he  was  greater  as  a  worker,  and 
his  works  live  after  him,  vitalized  and  given  enduring  substance  by 
the  spirit  which  created  them." — The  Philadelphia  Telegraph, 


5o8  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

"  Farewell,  Brother  Moody  !  Thousands  upon  thousands 
will  mourn  thy  departure  ;  thousands  upon  thousands  will  look 
back  to  the  time  when  they  were  first  warned  to  return  to  the  fold 
by  the  words  of  entreaty,  while  future  generations  will  be  blest  by 
the  influence  of  thy  searching  teaching  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus. 
The  Church  will  learn  all  too  soon  of  the  greatness  of  the  prophet 
who  has  left  them.  But  all  work  for  the  Master  is  done  under 
human  conditions  ;  the  man  passes,  his  work  abides.  So  it  will  be 
now  ;  Moody  has  ceased  to  live  in  the  flesh,  but  he  lives  in  his 
work,  and  the  results  of  his  wonderful  teaching  will  be  felt  by  suc- 
ceeding generations." — Christian  Work. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  a  wonderful  leader  of  men.  Everywhere  he 
went  he  set  others  to  work  for  Christ.  No  one  was  so  bad  as  to  be 
repulsive  to  him,  and  no  one  was  so  wise  or  good  that  he  did  not 
venture  to  approach  and  use  him  to  further  his  service  for  Christ. 
Thousands  of  waifs  rescued  from  rags  and  wretchedness  are  useful 
men  and  women  because  Mr.  Moody  put  his  arms  of  love  around 
them  and  lifted  them  up.  He  has  builded  many  structures  in  many 
cities,  where  young  men  and  women  gather  to  work  for  and  worship 
God.  But  his  noblest  monument  is  made  of  living-  stones  builded 
together  for  an  habitation  of  God  through  the  Spirit.  His  life  can 
best  be  summed  up  in  one  sentence  :  He  was  a  wise  winner  of 
souls. " —  The  Co7igregationalist. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  not  only  sincere  ;  he  was  intensely  in  earnest. 
He  not  only  implicitly  believed  in  the  truth  of  the  doctrines  which 
he  expounded,  but  he  was  firmly  convinced  that  the  acceptance  of 
those  doctrines  by  the  men  and  women  whom  he  addressed  was  the 
most  important  thing  in  the  world  ;  that  every  other  interest  was  in 
comparison  trivial  and  without  consequence.  He  believed,  more- 
over, and  he  believed  it  in  all  humility,  that  he  had  been  com- 
missioned from  above  to  go  about  the  world  delivering  the  message 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER  509 

of  the  Gospel.  He  felt  himself  to  be  a  Heaven-appointed  minister 
to  convince  humanity  of  sin  and  point  out  the  way  of  salvation." — • 
The  Philadelphia  Inquirer, 

"  He  commanded  the  respect  and  confidence  of  men  of  other 
religious  faiths  and  beliefs,  and  even  of  the  non-religious  classes,  by 
his  sturdy  common  sense,  his  geniality  and  whole-heartedness,  and 
by  his  freedom  from  all  cant  and  affectation.  He  lived  the  religion 
he  professed,  and  practiced  what  he  preached.  In  speech  and 
manner  he  was  simple,  clear,  and  direct ;  he  understood  the 
common  people  because  he  was  always  one  of  them  in  thought  and 
feeling,  and  among  them  his  greatest  and  most  enduring  work  was 
done.  The  world  is  a  far  better  and  happier  world  to-day  because 
of  the  life  of  Dwight  L.  Moody.  He  will  live  long  in  the  grateful 
and  tender  memory  of  mankind." — Leslie s  Weekly. 

"  He  never  made  any  serious  mistakes.  There  was  no  flaw  in 
his  character.  He  commanded  an  absolutely  universal  respect. 
Rich  and  poor,  high  and  low,  learned  and  illiterate,  cherished 
almost  exactly  the  same  feelings  toward  him.  The  kind  of 
influences  which  he  began  to  put  forth  in  Chicago  forty  years  ago 
went  on  growing  and  extending  to  the  day  of  his  death — and 
to-day,  as  tidings  of  his  death  are  borne  to  every  part  of  the  Eng- 
lish-speaking world,  his  influence  will  seem  to  be  greater  than  ever. 
It  is  not  an  exaggeration  to  say  that  the  coming  century  will  be  in 
certain  pervasive  and  vital  respects  appreciably  different  from  what 
it  would  have  been  were  it  not  for  the  distinctive  spiritual  and 
moral  forces  which  Moody  imparted  and  put  forth." — The  Chicago 
Record. 

"  A  rugged  simplicity  and  absolute  sincerity  were  the  chief 
elements  in  his  character.  No  one  ever  detected  in  him  a  suspicion 
of  cant.  It  might  have  been  said  of  him,  as  Mirabeau  said  of 
Robespierre,  '  That  is  a  dangerous  man  ;  he  beHeve?  every  word 


5IO  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

he  says.'  For  the  'drill  and  pipe  clay'  of  the  clerical  profession, 
as  Robertson  phrased  it,  Mr.  Moody  had  nothing  but  contempt, 
and  his  own  unconventional  ways,  in  the  pulpit  and  out  of  it,  did  a 
great  deal  to  break  down  the  stilted  ministerial  tradition.  Nor 
were  the  changes  in  his  own  style  of  work,  as  the  years  passed  by, 
without  great  significance.  From  being  a  mere  evangelist,  going 
from  city  to  city  to  address  vast  and  emotional  audiences,  he  •- 
became,  by  chief  intention  and  main  use  of  time  and  strength,  a 
Christian  educator.  His  educational  institutions  at  Northfield,  so 
remarkably  planned  and  endowed,  he  regarded  as  the  crowning 
work  of  his  life." — The  New  York  Nation. 

"  '  By  their  fruits  shall  ye  know  them.'  Judged  thus,  Mr. 
Moody's  career  takes  saintly  rank.  Possessed  of  a  marvelous 
personal  magnetism,  an  earnestness  that  was  irresistible,  and  an 
enthusiasm  that  defied  the  flight  of  time,  he  took  his  faith  in 
Divine  guidance  in  one  hand  and  his  faith  in  mankind  in  the  other, 
and,  so  armed,  hurled  the  full  force  of  his  splendid  powers  against 
the  cohorts  of  evil.  He  could  not  fail.  The  measure  of  his 
revealed  success  will  challenge  the  admiration  of  posterity. 

"  '  The  measure  of  his  revealed  success.'  But  what  of  the 
unrevealed  ?  Its  measure  was  never  known,  even  to  himself.  It 
remains  a  mystery  lodged  beyond  the  stars  He  drew  the  scoffer. 
He  startled  the  dormant  conscience  of  carelessness,  and  stirred  the 
soul  of  the  evil-doer.  He  wrought  blessings  innumerable  in  garret 
and  in  mansion.  He  labored  apart  from  the  church,  yet  impelled 
toward  the  Church  hundreds  of  thousands  whom  the  Church  had 
not  reached." — The  New  York  Mail  and  Express. 

"  No  one  could  visit  North  America  within  recent  years  with- 
out feeling  that  Mr.  Moody  was  one  of  the  great  personalities  of 
the  continent — and  that  not  only  as  an  evangelist  or  the  representa- 
tive of  evangelical  religion,  nor  even  as  an  organizer  of  education, 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER  511 

but  for  his  own  self's  sake  as  a  man  who  Hved  his  faith,  and  who 
lived  it  with  extraordinary  force  of  character  and  wisdom.  *  * 
What  I  feel  to  be  our  sorest  loss  in  the  death  of  this  <^reat  and 
good  man  is  that  we  shall  no  more  have  his  large  heart  and  large 
mind  in  the  reconciliation  of  those  divisions  of  opinion  among 
Christian  men  which  are  so  strong  and  in  some  quarters  so  bitter 
at  the  present  day.  No  one  could  have  assisted  reconciliation  so 
much  as  D.  L.  Moody.  Yet  it  seems  wrong  to  be  envious  even  to 
this  extent,  when  we  have  so  very  much  to  thank  God  for  in  the 
influence  and  results  of  His  servant's  life." — Prof.  George  Adam 
Smith,  in  The  British  Weekly. 

"  The  death  of  D.  L.  Moody  is  an  almost  irreparable  loss  to 
evangelical  Christianity.  He  was  probably  the  greatest  religious 
revivalist  of  the  present  century.  Yet  that  fact  hardly  gives  a  true 
indication  of  the  widespread  influence  he  exerted  over  the  lives  of 
multitudes  of  men  and  women  in  the  Old  World  as  well  as  the 
New.  Even  as  a  revivalist  he  differed  widely  from  the  old-time 
revivalists  of  the  last  generation,  who  terrified  the  sinner  into 
repentance  by  holding  him  over  the  precipice  where  he  could  see 
the  lurid  fires  of  the  pit  seemingly  eager  to  envelop  him.  Mr. 
Moody  doubtless  held  exactly  the  same  beliefs  as  to  the  character 
and  duration  of  future  punishment  as  his  predecessors  did.  But, 
without,  perhaps,  being  exactly  conscious  of  the  fact,  the  seeming 
harness  of  this  dogma  was  softened  by  his  profound  belief  in  the 
goodness  and  love  of  God.  It  was  upon  that  thought  he  most 
often  dwelt,  never  failing  to  bring  it  in  even  when  he  referred  to 
the  certainty  of  future  punishment.  This  characteristic  of  his 
exhortations  separated  him  widely  from  the  revivalists  of  the  past, 
and  gave  his  teachings  a  much  more  general  acceptance  than  was 
accorded  to  previous  evangelists." — The  New  York  Tribime. 


512  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

"  He  was  very  simple,  absolutely  earnest,  without  self-conceit 
or  pretence  or  cant.  He  had  power  ;  he  used  it  with  all  his  might 
according  to  his  knowledge  and  his  lights.  Nearly  all  of  us  came  in 
time  to  see  that  the  work  was  good  and  the  results  very  valuable  ; 
that  Moody,  however  he  did  it,  took  hold  of  the  people  that 
needed  attention,  stirred  them  up  to  good  purpose,  and  brought 
them  something  that  made  them  better.  The  English-speaking 
world  long  ago  recognized  him  as  a  great  force,  and  one  that  made 
for  righteousness  and  the  essentials  of  true  religion.  Not  all  of 
us  are  desirous  to  be  good  ourselves,  but  most  of  us  are  at  least  in 
favor  of  other  persons  being  good.  So,  nearly  all  of  us  have  been 
in  favor  of  Mr.  Moody,  and  respected  him  and  his  work,  and 
honor  his  memory  now  that  he  has  gone.  He  was  one  of  the  pre- 
eminently successful  men  of  the  century,  and  what  he  accom- 
plished he  did  without  much  help  from  education,  and  without 
favor  or  aid  save  what  his  manifest  deserts  won  for  his  work.  He 
simply  forgot  himself,  and  took  hold.  He  never  let  go,  and  he 
never  remembered  himself  enough  to  distract  his  attention  from 
the  work  his  heart  was  in." — Harper  s  Weekly. 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  not  a  man  to  whom  theological  subtleties  had 
any  charm.  But  his  convictions  never  halted.  What  he  believed, 
he  believed  with  heart  and  soul.  He  might  have  been  wrong  in 
premise  and  deduction,  he  might  have  been  old-fashioned  in  theory, 
but  in  spirit  he  was  always  right  and  strong,  and  he  had  almost  a 
prophet's  gift  in  the  potency  of  his  messages.  No  one  could  long 
be  in  contact  with  his  honesty  of  purpose,  his  unqualified  self-conse- 
cration, his  boundless  zeal  and  prophetic  spirit  without  being 
moved  by  these  qualities.  His  influence  was  not  only  national, 
but  international.  He  was  as  notable  a  force  in  Great  Britain  as 
in  the  United  States.  He  possessed  great  personal  magnetism, 
which,  combined  with  his  religious  enthusiasm,  whose  sincerity  no 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER  513 

one  questioned,  gave  him  a  power  of  persuasiveness  which  was 
weilnigh  irresistible. 

"  While  not  reckoned  among  the  clergy,  or  caring  to  be,  he  was 
yet  a  powerful  inspiration  to  the  profession.  He  will  be  missed  and 
mourned  by  the  churches  as  profoundly  as  by  the  common  people, 
who  regarded  him  almost  as  their  Moses.  His  educational  work  in 
his  native  town  might  well  stand  as  a  monument  of  noble  achievement. 
But  that  was  among  the  least  of  the  things  that  he  did  in  his 
Master's  name  and  for  His  cause.  He  was  a  living  Gospel,  and  his 
death,  with  its  peace  and  joy,  seemed  to  partake  of  the  beauty  and 
splendor  and  awe  of  a  transfiguration." — The  Boston  Transcript. 

"Mr.  Moody  was  a  great  evangelist,  and  he  did  a  great  work. 
An  unordained  and  essentially  popular  preacher,  who  felt  that  his 
commission  to  win  souls  was  in  his  love  for  Christ  and  his  desire  to 
serve  Him — ^he  reached  thousands  who  were  not  likely  to  come 
under  the  influence  of  others,  whose  belief  in  Christianity  he 
quickened  from  a  dull  acceptance  of  doctrine  into  a  living  power. 
Earnest  in  his  own  convictions,  and  gifted  with  a  remarkable  talent 
for  enlisting  the  interest  and  sympathy  of  his  hearers,  he  was  a 
speaker  of  unusual  effectiveness.  Direct  and  simple  in  his  utter- 
ances ;  not  always  grammatical ;  fond  of  anecdote  and  homely  illus- 
tration ;  emotional,  sometimes  to  an  extreme — such  was  Dwight  L. 
Moody  as  the  leader  of  countless  public  meetings.  He  filled 
churches  and  audience-rooms  because  the  people  believed  he  had  a 
message  to  deliver  ;  as  for  himself,  he  believed  that  that  message 
was  of  tremendous  consequence.  His  methods  have  been  criti- 
cized, but,  certainly,  he  was  not  open  to  the  charge  of  being 
insincere.  His  whole  life  was  given  to  doing  what  he  felt  to  be 
his  highest  duty.  To  this  task  he  brought  native  ability,  and  a 
constantly  increasing  knowledge  of  the  ways  to  make  that  ability 
count  for  the  most." — The  Hartford  Courant. 


514  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

"  Men  are  also  asking  the  secret  of  Mr.  Moody's  power.  Four 
words  sum  it  up  :  Common  Sense  and  Consecration.  He  had  many 
striking  characteristics,  but  through  them  all  shone  his  spirit  of 
consecration.  He  was  simple  ;  a  child  could  understand  his  sermons. 
He  believed  in  the  power  of  stories  ;  if  they  caused  laughter  or 
weeping,  he  took  advantage  of  the  smiles  or  the  tears  to  press  home 
the  Gospel  message.  He, was  a  man  of  faith,  faith  in  God  and  man. 
He  looked  for  the  best  in  men,  and  they  responded  by  giving  him 
their  best.  No  one  could  hear  him  in  private  conversation  or  on 
the  platform  without  recognizing  his  intense  earnestness.  What- 
ever he  did,  he  did  with  all  his  heart,  and  he  was  able  to  inspire 
others  to  similar  devotion.  Some  people  called  him  narrow  ;  they 
little  knew  that,  if  he  had  used  his  powers  in  other  directions,  he 
would  have  been  as  successful  in  conducting  a  great  financial  ven- 
ture, or  planning  a  military  campaign,  as  he  was  in  leading  men  to 
accept  Christ  as  their  Saviour. 

"  Mr.  Moody  believed  the  Bible  from  cover  to  cover,  and  he 
believed  in  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  Christ.  '  People  ask  me,' 
he  said  one  time,  '  If  I  believe  in  the  "  higher  criticism  ".  How  can 
I  when  I  don't  know  what  it  is  ?  They  ask  me  if  I  think  there  were 
two  Isaiahs.  Before  taking  up  that  question  seriously,  I  believe  we 
should  try  to  see  what  the  prophecy  itself  contains.  '  '  Why  do  you 
go  to  hear  Moody  ?  '  said  a  scoffer  contemptuously  to  a  fellow  club 
member.  'You  don't  believe  what  he  preaches.'  'No,  but  he 
believes  it  with  all  his  heart,  and  it  is  refreshing  to  meet  such  a 
man   in  these  days  of  doubt  and  uncertainty.  ' 

"  Mr.  Moody  was  an  optimist.  Elijah  on  Carmel  was  his 
ideal ;  he  had  little  patience  with  the  prophet  under  the  juniper 
tree.  He  was  a  sincere  man.  While  looked  upon  as  a  leader,  his 
daily  prayer  was  that  God  would  keep  him  humble.  To  know  him 
was  to  love  him  ;  thousands  of  people  in  every  part  of  this  country 


EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTEI^  515 

and  in  Europe,  and  hundreds  of  missionaries  in  foreign  lands,  have 
lost  a  personal  friend  in  his  death.  He  was  a  good  man.  and  faith- 
fully served  his  generation." — The  New  York  Observer. 

"Mr.  Moody  was  not  only  reverential,  but  humble.  He  was 
not  only  humble,  but  tolerant.  He  improved  very  much  under 
travel,  under  intercourse  with  able  minds,  and  under  the  study  of 
vast  throngs,  as  so  many  units.  The  consequence  was  that  from  a 
lone  exhorter  he  became  a  great  leader,  from  a  great  leader  he  rose 
to  be  an  organizer  of  much  skill,  and  he  topped  both  functions  with 
that  of  an  educator  on  distinct  lines,  at  needed  work,  and  upon  a 
vast  scale.  We  are  regarding  him  entirely  from  the  human  point 
of  view,  for  the  purpose  of  this  consideration,  and  we  are  noting  in 
him  exactly  the  qualities  which  would  have  made  him  successful  in 
other  undertakings.  His  qualities  were  not  unusual.  His  use  of 
them  was  extraordinary.  The  high  purpose  to  which  he  applied 
them  was  ennobling  and  uplifting.  The  singular  simplicity,  candor 
and  gentleness  of  his  spirit  were  remarkable,  considering  the  power 
he  wielded,  the  influence  which  he  commanded,  the  support  which 
he  received  and  the  praise,  whether  interested  or  disinterested,  of 
which  he  was  the  subject.  *  *  *  His  field  was  the  world,  and 
to  do  crood  his  reliofion. 

"  He  made  haste  slowly.  He  died  on  the  heights,  but  he 
started  on  the  plains  and  had  a  hard  passage  through  valleys 
and  up  mountain  steeps,  before  he  walked  with  God.  Without 
more  than  elementary  education,  utterly  without  training,  destitute 
of  experience,  simply  aflame  with  spiritual  purpose,  he  had  to  vin- 
dicate himself,  he  had  to  create  for  himself  a  way,  and  he  had  to 
do  so  against  a  critical,  cultivated  and  combined  class,  the  reverend 
clergy.  They  did  not  relish  an  unlettered  lay  intruder.  They  were 
justified  in  their  instinctive  disrelish.  Of  most  lay  intruders  the  note 
is  arrogance,  the  method  burglarious,  the  self-confidence  unabashable 


5i6  EDITORIAL  ESTIMATES  OF  HIS  CHARACTER 

and  the  ignorance  unteachable.  ^  Of  this  lay  intruder  nothing 
like  that  could  be  said.  He  was  altruistic,  he  was  modest,  he  was 
hungry  to  learn,  he  was  deferential  to  knowledge,  what  he  acquired 
he  held,  what  he  held  he  increased,  and  what  he  increased  and  made 
his  own  he  made  also  the  precious  possession  of  others.  The 
greatest  of  lay  workers  became  the  master  of  lay  workers,  their 
monitor  and  their  model,  and  this  at  first  uneducated  man  estab- 
lished institutions  for  Christian  instruction  which  taught  the  use  of 
the  tools  of  spiritual  knowledge  as  aptly  and  as  thoroughly  as  the 
use  of  the  tools  of  any  other  knowledge  is  anywhere  taught." — 
The  Bj'ooklyn  Eagle. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

The  Personal  Side  of  Mr.  Moody. 

E  was  a  remarkable  man  in  all  ways,  not  the  least  of 
which  was  his  appearance.  He  was  not  a  striking  figure  so 
far  as  stature  was  concerned,  for  he  was  rather  below  the 
av^erage  in  height,  but  he  was  a  marked  man  in  a  crowd,  and  every 
one  turned  to  look  at  him  because  the  very  atmosphere  that 
surrounded  him  was  commanding.  He  has  been  likened  to  Gar- 
field, in  his  massive  frame  ;  they  had  the  same  smiling  features,  the 
same  facility  of  anecdote,  and  the  same  effect  of  sincerity  in  every- 
thing they  said  or  did.  Their  style  of  oratory  was  almost  identical, 
and  both  possessed  the  rare  gift  of  captivating  people  at  first  sight. 
Mr.  Moody  was  very  quick  at  repartee.  An  interesting 
incident  is  related  of  his  meeting  with  Mr.  Gladstone.  Heartily 
grasping  Mr.  Moody's  hand  the  old  statesman  said,  "  I  wish  I  had 
your  body."  Mr.  Moody  replied,  "  I  wish  I  had  your  head."  Mr. 
Gladstone  responded,  "  I  mean  I  wish  I  had  your  lungs  ;"  to  which 
Mr.  Moody  again  replied,  "I  wish  I  had  your  brains,"  and. with 
hearty  good  wishes  they  parted. 

Personal  Characteristics 

Mr.  Moody  had  a  wonderful  voice.  He  could  easily  hold  the 
attention  of  thousands,  and  yet  in  conversation  there  was  a  pathos 
and  tenderness  in  his  inflections  that  was  most  fascinating.  He 
had  a  most  attractive  face  ;  it  was  kindly  and  helpful  in  its  every 
expression. 

517 


51 3  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

He  was  fond  of  telling  how  his  picture  once  did  duty  for  that 
of  Rutherford  B.  Hayes.  During  the  Hayes  campaign  a  big 
Republican  rally  was  held  in  Fort  Wayne,  Ind.  Everything  was 
ready,  when  it  was  suggested  that  the  meeting  would  be  incom- 
plete without  a  picture  of  General  Hayes.  This  brought  out  the 
discovery  that,  although  around  the  walls  of  the  room  were  hung 
the  pictures  of  many  celebrities  of  the  day,  that  of  Hayes  was  not 
among  them,  nor  could  a  picture  of  him  be  found.  One  of  the 
members  of  the  committee  on  arrangements,  a  sign  painter,  who 
had  a  natural  gift  of  drawing,  found  a  copy  of  Harpers  Maga- 
zi7ie  on  the  table  in  which  was  a  small  cut  of  Mr.  Moody.  He 
decided  it  was  enough  like  Hayes  to  make  a  copy  from,  and  in 
half  an  hour  he  had  a  good  sized  sketch,  and  labeled  the  product 
"Rutherford  B.  Hayes".  It  was  hung  on  the  stage,  and  the 
speakers  of  the  evening  pointed  to  it  as  they  referred  to  "that 
statesman,"  etc.  Finally  the  joke  leaked  out  in  the  crowd,  and 
almost  resulted  in  breaking  up  the  meeting.  Mr.  Moody  was 
informed  of  the  affair,  and  told  it  to  President  Hayes. 

His  Hold  Upon   His  Friends 

It  has  been  said  that  he  was  dictatorial,  sometimes  extremely 
so,  and  it  must  be  confessed  that  he  did  insist  on  his  own  way ;  but 
then,  he  had  studied  his  work  ;  he  knew  men,  and  he  knew  what 
would  tell  with  them,  and  it  was  a  rare  thing  ever  to  find  him 
mistaken  in  his  judgment.  But  even  though  he  was  brusque, 
sometimes  almost  to  the  point  of  rudeness,  it  is  a  mighty  tribute  to 
the  power  of  his  influence  over  men  that  he  instinctively  drew 
them  about  him.  One  of  his  English  friends  said  of  him,  "  He 
may  make  doorkeepers  of  us,  or  even  door-mats,  if  he  likes,  and 
we  will  love  him."  And  another  has  said  of  him,  "  Dear  old 
Moody!    We  all  love  him,  but  some  of  us  don't  like  him."     He  was, 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  519 

however,  the  most  tender-hearted  man  I  have  ever  known.  Dr. 
George  F.  Pentecost  has  well  said  of  him,  "  Intentionally  he  never 
wounded  anyone;  he  simply  lacked  perception,  and  did  not  put 
himself  in  the  other  man's  place." 

His  heart  was  big  enough  to  take  in  the  whole  world,  and  his 
sympathy  with  mankind  was  genuine.  An  instance  of  this  occurred 
in  New  York,  While  he  was  in  the  midst  of  a  sermon  a  baby 
commenced  to  cry,  much  to  the  annoyance  of  some  of  the  audience, 
who  darted  cruel  looks  at  the  innocent  child  and  the  embarrassed 
mother.  The  mother  waited  for  a  favorable  opportunity  to  go 
out,  but  Mr.  Moody  told  her  to  remain  where  she  was  ;  he  guessed 
his  lungs  were  stronger  than  the  baby's,  and  if  any  didn't  like  it,  they 
could  go  out. 

At  the  close  of  the  service  he  made  the  unique  announcement 
that  the  next  afternoon  he  would  preach  to  mothers  with  babies  in 
their  arms,  and  no  one  unaccompanied  by  a  baby  would  be 
admitted.  Never  before  was  there  such  a  gathering.  The  scene 
touched  the  heart  of  the  great  preacher,  and  his  words  the  hearts 
of  the  mothers.  Mr.  Moody  said  afterward  that  a  good  many  of 
the  women  present  must  have  borrowed  babies  for  the  occasion. 

His  Charming  Social  Side 

He  was  perfectly  delightful  socially  ;  he  was  as  genial  a  man 
as  I  have  ever  known.  He  would  laugh  till  the  tears  rolled  down 
his  face  at  some  story  which  he  might  have  heard  again  and  again. 
He  found  his  recreation  in  helping  others,  for  he  was  a  tireless 
worker  in  one  form  or  another,  yet  he  was  never  so  happy  as  when 
he  was  making  others'  burdens  easier  to  bear. 

From  the  very  day  that  D.  L.  Moody  came  before  the  eyes  of 
the  Christian  world,  the  same  characteristics  that  made  him  great 
in  later  days,  were  exhibited.     He  was  one  of  the  most  conscientious 
28 


520  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

men  I  have  ever  known,  and  ii  he  felt  that  anything  was  his 
duty,  nothing  in  the  world  would  make  him  so  miserable  as  to  feel 
that  he  must  leave  it  undone,  and  nothing  made  him  so  happy  as 
to  feel  that  he  could  perform  it  quickly  whatever  the  cost.  If  he 
ever  wronged  any  one,  he  was  the  first  to  make  that  wrong  right. 

Mr.  Moody  seldom  preached  a  sermon  without  emphasizing 
the  fact  that  true  happiness  and  the  richest  blessings  will  never  be 
realized  by  a  professed  Christian,  if  at  any  time  he  has  wronged  a 
fellow-man  and  has  not  made  an  honest  attempt  to  clear  up  the 
wrong,  or  if  he  does  not  perform,  willingly  and  promptly,  known 
duties.  That  the  great  evangelist  made  this  teaching  one  of  the 
cardinal  principles  of  his  own  life  is  clearly  demonstrated  by  the 
following  incident,  related  by  him  in  an  address  to  a  body  of 
students  at  Northfield. 

A  Singular  Instance  of   His  Kindliness 

"  You  can  never  accomplish  much  in  your  Christian  life  until 
you  get  right  with  your  fellow-men  as  well  as  with  God,  and  until 
you  perform  your  duty  as  it  comes  to  you.  Let  me  give  you  an 
experience  that  I  had  a  few  mornings  ago.  I  always  get  up  early, 
and  devote  the  first  hour  of  the  day  to  my  Bible.  This  morning  I 
sat  down  at  my  desk  to  study  as  usual.  In  a  few  minutes  I  chanced 
to  look  out  of  the  window,  and  I  saw  a  young  fellow  with  a  heavy 
valise  on  his  back,  walking  toward  the  railroad  station  three  miles 
away.  If  I  thought  about  it  at  all,  I  thought  he  was  one  of  the 
students  going  for  an  early  train.  I  turned  my  eyes  to  m.y  Bible, 
but,  try  as  hard  as  I  might,  I  could  not  'hy.  vay  mind  on  what  I 
read  with  my  eyes. 

"  I  looked  out  of  the  window  again.  Something  said,  '  You 
ought  to  take  that  boy  to  the  station.'  I  tried  to  persuade  myself 
that  it  was  not  my  duty.      I   made  another  effort  to  study,  but  it 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  521 

was  of  no  use.     I  jumped  up  and  hurried  to  the  stables,  hitched  up 

a  horse,  and  drove  rapidly  until  I  came  up  to  the  boy.     I  took  him 

and  his  baggage  in  and  drove  to  the  station.     After  giving  the  boy 

Godspeed   and  receiving  hearty  thanks  for   my  kindness,   I   drove 

home,  and   went  to   my  study.      I    took  up  my  Bible,  and  I  didn't 

have  the  slightest  trouble  in  fixing  my  mind  on  my  work." 

I    drove   with   him   one   mornino-   while   he  was   makingf  some 

final  preparation  for  the  coming  of  the  students   to  their  annual 

conference,  when  we  stopped  at  a  little  patch  of  corn,  and  he  said, 

"  I  hoed  two  rows  of  corn  here  this  morning  before  you  were  up." 

I   have  never  been  able  to    get   out   of    my  mind    the    imaginary 

picture  of  D.  L.  Moody,  with   coat   and  vest  off,   hoeing   corn   at 

Northfield. 

His  Extreme  Modesty 

With  all  his  greatness  he  was  one  of  the  most  modest  men 
that  you  could  possibly  find.  Other  men  might  have  been  turned 
with  the  flattery  of  the  people,  but  extreme  modesty  was  a  striking 
characteristic  of  the  evangelist's  personality.  His  phenomenal 
successes  in  many  lines  left  him  a  man  devoid  of  all  desire  for 
notoriety  and  fame. 

Although  thousands  of  persons  would  travel  long  distances  to 
hear  him  preach,  still  he  invariably  maintained  that  there  were  any 
number  of  ministers  who  could  excel  him  as  a  preacher,  and  he 
was  always  willing  and  eager  to  give  place  to  others.  During  the 
Northfield  Conferences,  at  which,  in  the  minds  of  the  people  in  at- 
tendance, he  was  the  central  figure,  Mr.  Moody  seldom  preached, 
unless  to  take  the  place  of  some  speaker  who  was  unable  to  meet 
his  appointment,  or  unless  urgent  requests  from  the  audience  were 
repeatedly  sent  to  him.  Asked  once  why  he  did  not  speak  more 
often  at  the  conferences,  the  evangelist  replied  : 


523  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

"  Oh,  you  can  hear  me  any  time.  I  want  you  to  hear  these 
noted  men  that  I  have  brouofht  from  over  the  sea." 

Again,  when  urged  to  preach,  he  made  this  announcement 
from  the  rostrum  one  morning  : 

"  I  don't  want  to  take  the  time  of  these  dear  brothers  who 
have  come  so  far  to  speak  to  us.  I  have  received  a  good  many 
requests  to  preach.  If  you  really  want  to  hear  me  you  will  be 
willing  to  get  up  early  for  the  privilege.  Meet  me  here  in  the 
auditorium  at  7  o'clock  to-morrow  morning,  and  we  will  have  a 
Bible  talk  together." 

Despite  the  numerous  other  sessions  during  the  day,  these 
sunrise  services  were  continued  during  the  rest  of  the  conference, 
and  each  session  was  largely  attended  by  those  eager  to  catch 
every  syllable  that  fell  from  Mr.  Moody's  lips. 

His  Wonderful  Unselfishness 

He  was  absolutely  unselfish.  During  the  first  visit  of  Messrs. 
Moody  and  Sankey  to  Great  Britain  they  were  in  need  of  a  book 
of  songs  to  use  at  the  meetings.  No  publisher  would  bring  out 
the  book,  although  Mr.  Moody  offered  to  give  it  to  any  one  who 
would  print  it  and  give  him  what  copies  he  wanted  to  use.  Finally 
he  was  compelled  to  have  the  book  printed  at  his  own  expense. 
It  has  since  attained  a  larger  circulation  than  any  other  publication 
except  the  Bible,  and  is  one  of  the  best  paying  literary  properties 
in  the  world.  Every  dollar  of  the  profits  of  the  book  has  gone  to 
charity  in  one  form  or  another. 

Mr.  Fleming  H.  Revell  has  said  :  "  Some  years  ago,  some  of 
the  papers  began  to  say  that  Mr.  Moody  was  making  a  good  thing 
financially  of  his  reputation.  As  a  rule  Mr.  Moody  never  paid 
no  attention  to  criticism.  He  was  wont  to  say  that  no  two  people 
thought  alike  of  everything  or  received  always  the  same  impression. 


HALL.     The  celebrated  Detectjve  and  Evangelist,  converted  in  the  meet- 
ings conducted  by  Mr.  Moody  in  Kaltimore,  in  1878. 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  525 

He  was  friendly  toward  the  public  press,  claiming  that  it  was  a 
great  educator  and  a  great  power  in  the  spreading  of  both  secular 
and  religious  knowledge.  But  he  was  deeply  grieved  at  this.  He 
referred  to  the  criticisms  one  day  in  the  pulpit  here  in  Chicago. 
There  were  tears  in  his  eyes,  and  his  voice  quivered  as  he  spoke. 
'As  I  know  my  heart  before  God,'  he  said,  '  I  have  never  let  the 
desire  for  money  determine  my  conduct  in  any  way.  I  know  I  am 
weak  and  sinful  in  many  ways,  but  the  devil  has  not  that  hold  upon 
me.  I  have  never  profited  personally  by  a  single  dollar  that  has 
been  raised  through  my  work.  It  hurts  me,  above  all  other  things, 
to  be  charged  with  this.  May  God  forgive  those  who  say  this 
of  me.'  " 

Mr.  Revell  added,  that  though  Moody  received  over  $125,000 
from  royalties  on  his  work,  he  had  never  used  a  penny  of  it  for  per- 
sonal purposes,  reserving  it  all  to  further  his  work.  "  Mr.  Moody  was 
a  good  financier,"  he  said.  "  He  took  great  care  of  his  money,  but 
not  to  save  it  and  build  a  fortune.  Rather  he  desired  it  to  use  in 
his  work.      I  fully  believe  he  died  a  poor  man." 

Anecdotes  of  His  Earlier  Years  of  Service 

Dr.  Edward  Eggleston  has  told  the  following  stories  about 
Mr.  Moody :  "  I  have  heard  Mr.  Moody  tell  how  while  in  the  Chris- 
tian Commission  service  he  was  propounding  his  thorough  question 
to  a  Tennesee  planter,  but,  as  the  man  was  deaf,  the  repeated 
vociferation  of  '  Are  you  a  Christian  ? '  failed  to  bring  a  reply. 
Turning  to  the  black  man  who  stood  by  he  asked,  '  Is  your  master 
a  Christian?'     '  No,  Massa,  he  is  a  Presbyterian.' 

"It  was  not  uncommon  in  those  days  for  Mr.  Moody  to  assail 
suddenly  a  strange  young  man  with  this  blank  query.  Of  course, 
he  soon  became  noted  for  his  zeal  and  eccentricity.  A  young  man 
from  the  country  who  had  held  a  situation  in  the  city  for  just  three 


526  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

weeks,  was  thus  accosted  by  him-in  the  street,  '  Are  you  a  Chris- 
tian?' He  repHed,  'It  is  none  of  your  business.'  'Yes  it  is.' 
'  Then  you  must  be  D.  L.  Moody,'  said  the  stranger. 

"  '  Madam,'  said  Moody  to  an  Irishwoman,  '  Won't  you  go  to 
church  to-night?'  '  Whose  is  it  ?  Is  it  Moody's  Church?'  'No, 
it  is  God's  Church,  but  Moody  goes  there.'  '  Troth,  thin  I  won't 
go.'  With  this  she  began  to  charge  Moody  with  divers  crimes,  not 
knowing  to  whom  she  spoke.  '  You  better  be  careful,'  said  he 
presently,  '  my  name  is  Moody,'  '  Tut,  tut ',  said  she  with  Irish  dex- 
terity and  effrontery,    '  I  know'd  Moody  afore  you  was  born.'  " 

A  volume  could  be  written  of  the  thincrs  which  the  friends  of 
this  mighty  man  of  God  have  said  since  his  death.  The  words  of 
two  representative  men  may,  however,  with  peculiar  appropriate- 
ness be  presented. 

The  Simplicity  of  His  Habits  and  Tastes 
The  Rev.  George  F.  Pentecost  has  said  :  "  Had  he  lived  in  the 
early  days  of  Israel's  trials,  he  should  have  judged  Israel,  and  deliv- 
ered them  out  of  the  hand  of  their  enemies.  He  was  like  Gideon,  and 
his  latent  powers  were  known  only  to  God.  He  was  the  most  reti- 
cent man  I  ever  knew.  One  of  his  marked  characteristics  was  his 
strong,  practical  common  sense  and  fine  knowledge  of  men.  Once 
in  the  Boston  Tabernacle,  just  before  going  on  the  platform,  some 
one  came  to  see  him.  '  There  is  a  man  outside  wishes  to  see  you.' 
'Well,'  said  the  evangelist,  'I  have  no  time  to  see  him.'  'But,' 
replied  the  usher,  '  He  says  he  must  see  you.'  'What  kind  of  a 
man  is  he  ? '  '  He  is  tall  and  thin,  with  long  hair.'  '  That  settles 
it,"  said  Mr.  Moody,  '  I  don't  want  to  see  any  long-haired  men  nor 
short-haired  women.'  It  was  a  rare  thing  for  him  to  make  amis- 
take  in  any  of  the  men  gathered  about  him. 

"  He   had   the   simplest  habits  and  tastes.      He  spent  money 
lavishly  on  other  people — almost  none  on  himself.    I  consider  him 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  527 

the  world's  greatest  evangelist,  and  he  has  influenced  more  people 
for  God  than  any  other  man  in  modern  times." 

The  Rev.  G.  Campbell  Morgan  has  said  of  him  :  "My  personal 
acquaintance  with  Dwight  Lyman  Moody  was  not  of  long  duration 
according  to  the  measure  of  the  calendar.  If,  however,  'we  could 
count  time  by  heart  throbs,'  then  I  might  claim  to  have  known  him  ; 
for  it  has  been  one  of  the  greatest  privileges  of  my  life  to  have 
come  very  near  him  in  the  ripest  years  of  his  life. 

"  I  first  saw  him  in  1883  during  his  second  visit  to  Birmingham. 
Bingley  Hall  was  being  crowded  by  day  with  eager  crowds  who  had 
come  by  train  from  the  whole  surrounding  district.  The  city  was 
moved  to  its  very  centre.  The  impression  of  those  days,  therefore, 
is  that  of  the  man  in  the  midst  of  the  rush  of  work.  He  was  keen, 
alert,  forceful.  No  detail  of  arrangement  escaped  his  notice.  A 
vacant  seat,  the  opening  and  closing  of  doors,  a  tendency  to  drag 
the  sineing",  all  these  he  noted  and  uttered  directions  about.  Yet 
he  was  by  no  means  a  man  who  cared  for  detail's  sake.  The  greater 
was  ever  the  reason  for  the  less,  and  the  less  was  important  only  as 
part  of  the  greater.  The  supreme  passion  of  his  life  was  the  win- 
ning of  men  for  Christ,  and  no  detail  that  would  hinder  or  help 
was  too  small  for  consideration. 

How   He  Appeared  in   His  N^vtive  Town 

"In  1896  I  visited  the  States  for  the  first  time.  Among  other 
work,  I  had  promised  Mr.  Moody  to  speak  at  the  Chicago  Insti- 
tute to  his  students.  The  Northfield  Conference  was  in  session, 
and  I  managed  to  get  a  few  hours  there.  Arriving  late  at  night,  I 
found  my  quarters  and  retired.  The  next  day  was  a  field  day  for 
me,  and  a  revelation.  I  attended  meetings  from  morning  till 
night.  Everywhere  Mr.  Moody  was  the  moving  spirit.  Bright, 
cheery,  and  yet  in  dead  earnest,' he  seemed  to  make  everything  go 


528  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

before  him.  In  the  intervals  of  the  meetings  he  gave  me  a  drive 
round  the  campus  in  his  buggy.  Every  point  of  interest  was 
pointed  out,  and  in  a  few  brief  words  the  story  of  how  the  different 
buildings  were  erected  was  told.  Passing  one  house,  he  said, 
'  People  sometimes  ask  me  how  I  found  Northfield  ?  I  tell  them 
it  found  me.  I  was  born  there,'  Suddenly  he  pulled  up  his  horse 
to  speak  to  a  group  of  children.  '  Have  you  had  any  apples 
to-day?'  said  he.  'No,  Mr.  Moody,'  they  replied.  'Then  go 
down  to  my  house,  and  tell  them  to  give  you  all  you  want.'  Away 
they  went,  and  so  did  he,  both  happier.  Down  a  narrow  lane  he 
drove  next,  and  through  a  gate  to  where  a  man  was  at  work  in  a 
field.  '  Biglow,'  said  Mr.  Moody,  'it's  too  hot  for  you  to  work 
much.  Half  a  day's  work  for  a  day's  pay,  you  know,  while  this 
heat  lasts.'  I  sat  by  his  side  and  watched,  and  began  to  under- 
stand the  orreatness  of  the  man  whose  life  was  so  broad  that  it 
touched  sympathetically  all  other  phases  of  life. 

Mr.   Moody  as  Host 

"  After  the  evening  meeting,  at  his  invitation,  I  gathered  with 
the  speakers  at  his  house.  Then,  for  the  first  time,  I  saw  him  in  a 
new  role,  that  of  the  host.  He  sat  in  his  chair  at  the  head  of  the  table 
and  helped  the  ice-cream,  directed  the  conversation,  and  listened 
with  the  patience  and  simplicity  of  a  child  to  every  word  that  others 
spoke.  That  night  the  talk  turned  on  the  most  serious  subjects,  the 
inner  life  of  the  people  of  God  and  its  bearing  on  the  work  of  the 
churches  among  the  people.  As  we  broke  up  I  went  to  bid  him 
good-bye,  as  I  was  to  depart  by  an  early  train  on  the  morrow.  '  O  ! ' 
said  he,  '  1  shall  see  you  in  the  morning  ;  you  are  to  preach  at  ten 
o'clock.'  That  was  my  first  notice.  What  did  I  do  ?  I  preached, 
as  he  told  me,  as  others  and  better  men  have  ever  been  glad  to 
do.     That  was  his  way.      He  printed  no  programme  of  the  North- 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  539 

field  Conferences.  He  gathered  around  him  a  band  of  teachers 
and  speakers,  and  then  as  the  days  moved  on  he  manipulated  them 
according  to  the  necessities  of  the  case.  After  speaking  next 
morning  I  hurried  away,  but  in  that  brief  stay  Moody  had  become 
much  to  me.  Strong,  tender,  considerate,  from  that  day  I  more 
than  reverenced  him,  I  loved  him." 

In  the  summer  of  1897  I  was  asked  to  go  to  Kinsman,  Ohio, 
to  fill  an  engagement  which  properly  belonged  to  Mr.  Moody,  but 
he  was  so  busily  engaged  with  his  own  Northfield  work,  and  was 
so  fearful  of  taking  a  long  journey  in  the  heat  of  summer,  that 
Professor  James  McGranahan  insisted  that  I  should  come  to  Kins- 
man to  speak  to  thousands  of  people  who  gathered  every  summer 
on  the  Fair  grounds.  Mr.  Moody  had  started  this  meeting  two  or 
three  years  before,  and  he  insisted  that  it  should  not  be  given  up. 

'  Prayer  Saved  the  Ship  ' 

When  I  reached  the  beautiful  home  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  McGrana- 
han I  found  that  my  helper  in  the  meeting  was  to  be  that 
grand  old  hero  of  many  a  battle-field  and  devoted  soldier  of  the 
cross.  General  O.  O.  Howard.  Sitting  together  with  the  friends 
who  had  come  in  from  the  surrounding  country  to  attend  the 
meeting,  the  name  of  Mr.  Moody  was  mentioned,  and  General 
Howard  said,  "  I  was  with  him  on  the  steamship  Spree,  when,  Mr. 
Moody  says,  '  God  heard  our  prayer  and  saved  the  ship.'  A  good 
many  people  have  criticised  this  statement,"  said  General  Howard, 
"  and  there  was  much  controversy  in  the  newspapers  ;  but  Moody 
always  believed  it.  Over  700  people  were  with  us  on  the  ship. 
One  morning,  about  daybreak,  I  was  awakened  by  a  sound  like  an 
explosion,  and  I  heard  the  people  rushing  along  the  halls,  and  then 
some  one  said  the  main  shaft  had  been  snapped  asunder,  and  falling 
down  had  made  a  break  in  the  ship.     The  passengers  were  terror- 


530  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

stricken.  The  bulkheads  were  qdickly  closed,  and  the  bailing  and 
the  pumping  began,  but  when  they  reached  the  third  compartment 
of  the  ship,  they  found  it  almost  impossible  to  clear  it,  and  the  aft 
part  of  the  ship  was  sunk  to  the  gunwale.  Mr.  Moody,  with  his 
son,  I  found  on  deck.  He  was  lying  back  in  a  chair  looking  very 
ill,  but  after  a  moment  he  said,  '  General  Howard,  won't  you  come 
with  me  ?'  And  followed  by  his  son  we  made  our  way  to  the  state- 
room, and  there  he  fell  upon  his  knees  and  prayed  as  only  he  knew 
how  to  pray.  He  told  the  Lord  that  He  was  the  God  of  the  sea, 
and  asked  Him  that,  like  as  He  had  stilled  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  He 
might  save  these  people  in  peril  on  the  ship.  He  asked  the  Lord 
to  send  him  a  ship  to  take  them  safe  home  that  they  might  finish 
their  work;  and  when  he  had  prayed,  and  his  son  had  followed,  he 
opened  his  Bible  and  read  the  ninety-first  Psalm,  and  then  said, 
*  This  Psalm  is  just  made  for  this  occasion,  isn't  it  ?  ' 

A  Service  of  Praise  on  the   Steamer 

"  After  that  he  was  always  surrounded  by  a  company  of  people, 
giving  help  wherever  help  could  be  given.  When  Sunday  morning 
came  he  gathered  the  people  in  the  dining  saloon,  and  conducted 
the  service  in  his  own  inimitable  style,  and  after  forty-eight  hours 
of  drifting,  a  ship  came  hurrying  over  to  us  to  take  us  safe  home. 
Mr.  Moody  led  a  service  of  thanksgiving  and  praise,  and  preached 
as  I  never  had  heard  him  preach  before.  That  is  the  story  of  his 
sending  the  cable  '  Prayer  saved  the  ship.'  " 

There  was  a  hush  on  the  little  assembly,  and  I  know  of  one  at 
least  who  offered  up  a  prayer  of  thanksgiving  that  D.  L.  Moody 
had  not  only  helped  save  the  people  on  board  the  Spree,  but  had 
been  used  of  God  to  save  thousands  of  others  just  as  truly  drifting, 
and  whose  case  was  just  as  apparently  hopeless. 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  Of  MR.  MOODY  531 

The  Rev.  F.  B.  Meyer,  of  Christ  Church,  London,  knew  Mr. 
Moody  most  intimately,  and  loved  him  not  only  for  his  work's  sake, 
but  also  because  of  the  peculiar  charm  and  fascination  of  his  great 
personality.      He  has  recently  said  in  an  English  paper  : 

"To  have  known  D.  L.  Moody,  and  come  within  the  range  of 
his  strong  personality,  has  been  to  many  men  one  of  the  most 
influential  factors  in  their  character  and  life-work  ;  and  it  is  not 
easy  for  such  to  imagine  a  world  from  which  the  inspiration  of  his 
presence  has  been  withdrawn.  It  is  still  less  easy  under  the  im- 
mediate sorrow  of  such  a  bereavement  to  characterize  this  natural 
prince  and  leader  of  men. 

How  Mr.   Moody  First  Blessed  Mr.   Meyer's  Work 

"  I  met  him  first  in  York,  in  1S73,  o^  ^i^  arrival  with  Mrs. 
Moody  and  his  two  eldest  children.  Accompanied  by  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Sankey,  they  had  come  to  our  country,  as  it  appeared,  by  a 
divine  prompting,  and  had  just  landed  at  Liverpool.  Some  time 
before,  the  secretary  of  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  had  impressed  upon  him 
the  two  words,  "  Bennett,  York  ; "  and  not  knowing  where  else  to 
turn,  two  of  his  friends  having  suddenly  died.  Moody  telegraphed  to 
Mr.  Bennett,  saying,  '  I  will  be  in  York  to-night.' 

"  This  was  Saturday.  On  the  following  day  he  preached  at 
the  chapel  built  for  the  Rev.  James  Parsons,  and  then  occupied  by 
the  Rev.  John  Hunter  (now  of  Glasgow).  During  the  following 
w^eek  he  held  evening  services  in  the  old  Londal  Chapel,  and  noon 
prayer  meetings  at  the  Y.  M.  C.  A.  After  two  or  three  days  with 
the  Wesleyans,  he  came  to  the  Baptist  Chapel,  of  which  I  was 
minister,  and  conducted  meetings  there  for  about  a  fortnight,  with 
ever-increasing  numbers  and  marvelous  results.  He  and  Mr. 
Sankey  have  often  spoken  of  that  little  vestry,  where  we  three 
spent  much  time  in  prayer,  little  weening  that  the  earnestness  of 


533  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

our  desires  and  intercessions  were  the  travail  pangs  of  so  great  a 
spiritual  movement  as  followed. 

"  All  who  have  heard  him  will  recall  the  quiver  in  his  voice 
when  he  told  some  pathetic  story  ;  but  I  never  guessed  the  inten- 
sity of  his  tenderness  till  I  saw  him  with  his  grandchildren.  He 
used  to  drive  them  about  in  his  carriage,  or  carry  them  in 
his  arms. 

"  One  of  the  most  striking  incidents  in  my  memory  was  when 
he  stood  with  them  beside  his  mother's  grave,  in  a  summer  sunset, 
and  asked  us  to  pray  that  they  might  be  in  the  coming  century 
what  she  had  been  in  this.  And  when  little  Irene  was  dying,  he 
used  to  be  on  the  watch  below  her  window  to  keep  all  quiet,  would 
steal  down  from  the  meetings  to  hear  the  latest  news,  would  be  the 
nurse  and  playmate  of  her  little  cousin,  that  all  might  devote  them- 
selves to  the  chamber  of  sickness. 

Mr.  Moody's  Sure  Faith 

"  He  never  wavered  in  his  attachment  to  the  great  fundamen- 
tals of  the  Gospel.  His  sermons  on  the  Blood,  the  Holy  Spirit,  the 
Love  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ,  were  great  testimonies  to  the  mighty 
truths  which  have  been  the  theme  of  every  revival  of  evangelical 
religion.  There  was  no  uncertain  sound  in  the  Gospel  as  he 
preached  it,  and  it  was  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation  to  tens 
of  thousands. 

"  What  a  welcome  he  must  have  received  as  he  entered 
Heaven  !  Surely  an  abundant,  a  choral  entrance  must  have  been 
ministered  unto  him  by  myriads  who  are  there,  because  of  the 
message  uttered  in  burning  acccents  by  his  lips." 

I  am  delighted  thus  to  quote  Mr.  Meyer.  I  know  of  few  men 
better  qualified  to  speak  than  he.  While  in  conversation  the  other 
day  with   Mr.    Fleming   H.    Revell  (Mr.   Moody's  brother-in-law), 


\ 


REV.    H.   M.  WHARTON,   D.D.,  author  of  "A    Month    with    Moody,   in  Chicago,"   and 
for  many  years  a  most  intimate  friend  and  co-worker  with  Mr.  Moody. 


THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY  535 

he  said  to  me.  "  If  you  would  like  to  find  in  print  a  good  description 
of  Mr,  Moody's  last  hours  and  his  triumphant  entrance  into  the 
presence  of  God,  you  have  only  to  read  the  closing  lines  of  Bun- 
yan's  Pilgrim's  Progress,  for  in  the  passing  over  of  Mr.  Stand-fast, 
there  is  the  most  striking  description  of  the  passing  away  of  Mr. 
^  Moody."      For  the  help  of  my  readers  I  here  quote  it. 

"  When  Mr.  Stand-fast  had  thus  set  things  in  order,  and  the 
time  being  come  for  him  to  haste  him  away,  he  also  went  down  to 
the  river.  Now,  there  was  a  great  calm  at  that  time  in  the  river  ; 
wherefore  Mr.  Stand-fast,  when  he  was  about  half-way  in,  stood  a 
while,  and  talked  to  his  companions  that  had  waited  upon  him 
thither.  And  he  said,  '  This  river  has  been  a  terror  to  many  ;  yea, 
the  thoughts  of  it  have  also  frighted  me  ;  but  now  methinks  I  stand 
easy  ;  my  foot  is  fixed  upon  that  on  which  the  feet  of  the  priests 
that  bare  the  ark  of  the  covenant  stood  while  Israel  went  over 
Jordan.  The  waters,  indeed,  are  to  the  palate  bitter,  and  to  the 
stomach  cold  ;  yet  the  thought  of  what  I  am  going  to,  and  of  the 
conduct  that  waits  for  me  on  the  other  side,  doth  lie  as  a  glowing 
coal  at  my  heart.  I  see  myself  now  at  the  end  of  my  journey  ;  my 
toilsome  days  are  ended;  I  am  going  to  see  that  head  which  was 
crowned  with  thorns,  and  that  face  which  was  spit  upon  for  me.  I 
have  formerly  lived  by  hearsay  and  faith  ;  but  now  I  go  where  I 
shall  live  by  sight,  and  shall  be  with  Him  in  whose  company  I 
delight  myself.  I  have  loved  to  hear  my  Lord  spoken  of ;  and 
wherever  I  have  seen  the  print  of  His  shoe  in  the  earth,  there  I 
have  coveted  to  set  my  foot,  too.  His  name  has  been  to  me  as  a 
civet-box;  yea,  sweeter  than  all  perfumes.  His  voice  to  me  has 
been  most  sweet,  and  His  countenance  I  have  more  desired  than 
they  that  have  most  desired  the  light  of  the  sun.  His  Word  I  did 
use  to  gather  for  my  food,  and  for  antidotes  against  my  faintings. 


536  THE  PERSONAL  SIDE  OF  MR.  MOODY 

He  hath  held  me,  and  hath  kept  m«  from  mine  iniquities  ;  yea,  my 
steps  hath  He  strengthened  in  His  way.' 

"  Now,  while  he  was  thus  in  discourse,  his  countenance  changed, 
his  strong  man  bowed  under  him  ;  and,  after  he  had  said,  *  Take 
me,  for  I  come  unto  Thee  !'  he  ceased  to  be  seen  of  them." 

And  so  I  bring  my  tribute  to  a  close,  thanking  God,  now,  as  I 
thanked  Him  at  the  beginning,  that  I  have  had  the  privilege  of 
writing ;  and  saying  of  Mr.  Moody  yet  again — he  was  the  best 
friend  I  ever  had,  and  more  helpful  to  me  than  any  other  man  that 
ever  lived  in  all  my  knowledge  of  the  world.  Other  men  have 
known  him  longer  than  I,  but  no  one,  I  am  sure,  could  ever  have 
been  more  helped  by  him.  I  say  of  him  as  Paul  said  of  the  Philip- 
pians,  "  I  thank  my  God  upon  every  remembrance  of  you." 


CHAPTER  XXXIII. 

Personal  Reminiscences  of  D.  L  Moody 

By  Rev.  II.  M.  Wharton,  D.  D. 

ABOUT  twenty  years  ago,  having  just  concluded  in  the  city  of 
Alexandria,  Virginia,  the  second  evangelistic  meeting  I  had 
ever  held,  I  determined  to  go  to  Baltimore  in  order  to  hear 
Mr.  Moody,  whose  fame  as  a  worker  for  Christ  in  the  salvation  of 
men  was  filling  the  world.  Mr.  Moody  was  spending  the  winter  in 
the  city  of  Baltimore,  and  I  found  difficulty,  being  an  entire 
stranger,  to  gain  access  to  the  crowded  building  the  one  afternoon 
it  was  my  privilege  to  hear  him. 

By  good  fortune,  I  met  a  minister  with  whom  I  had  become 
acquainted  some  months  before.  He  took  me  through  the  pastor's 
study  to  the  platform.  It  was  in  this  study  that  I  saw  Mr.  Moody 
walking  back  and  forth,  his  hands  behind  him,  and  apparently  in 
deep  thought.  He  shook  hands  with  me,  and  with  hardly  an 
exchange  of  words  put  into  my  hands  several  circulars  which  he 
asked  me  to  give  to  others  as  I  went  home.  I  found  it  to  be  a 
call  to  Christian  workers  to  go  forth  into  the  harvest  field.  He 
preached  that  afternoon  on  Repentance,  and  I  well  remember 
something  of  the  sermon,   and  especially  his  illustrations. 

The  years  passed  on  and  I  became  pastor  in  the  City  of 
Baltimore.  One  afternoon,  I  think  it  was  in,  92,  I  was  standing 
in  front  of  Mr.  Moody  in  the  great  Cyclorama  Building,  where 
thousands  had  assembled  for  services,  the  choir  was  singing, 
and  I  think  the  Scriptures  had  been  read.      I  did   not,   of  course, 

537 


538  PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OF  D.  L.  MOODY 

suppose  that  he  would  recognise  me,  and  was  surprised  when 
he  looked  down  and  said  suddenly,  "  Come  up  on  the  plat- 
form." As  I  was  sure  he  did  not  know  me,  I  turned  to  a  minister 
at  my  side,  a  prominent  pastor  of  the  city,  and  said,  "  He  is  calling 
you."  He  started  to  the  platform  when  Mr.  Moody  said  he 
wanted  me,  and  as  soon  as  I  walked  up,  he  said,  "  I  want  you  to 
speak  to  the  people  right  away."  With  hardly  any  notice  at  all  I* 
made  some  remarks,  and  before  I  left  that  afternoon  he  had  asked 
me  to  <?o  to  Chicaofo.  It  occurred  to  me  afterwards  that  he  had 
possibly  heard  that  I  had  been  doing  some  evangelistic  work  and, 
being  told  that  I  was  in  the  audience,  called  me  up,  and  was  taking 
a  sample  to  find  if  I  would  do  as  a  Chicago  worker. 

A  Closer  Personal  Acquaintance 

It  did  not  take  him  longr  to  make  a  decision  when  facts  were 
before  him.  Upon  my  arrival  at  Chicago  it  was  a  great  privilege  to 
know  that  one  of  the  blessings  in  store  for  me  was  a  closer  personal 
acquaintance  with  Mr.  Moody.  Three  times  a  day,  with  few  excep- 
tions,  I  sat  by  his  side  at  the  table,  and  was  often  in  his  room,  which 
was  regarded  as  headquarters.  Every  night  when  we  came  in  from 
our  places  of  preaching— halls,  churches,  tents,  theatres,  we  would 
meet  around  a  large  table  in  his  room  and  enjoy  refreshments  and 
a  most  delightful  social  hour,  as  we  discussed  the  work  of  the 
Master,  or  indulged  in  innocent  jest  and  merriment.  Mr.  Moody 
was  fond  of  a  joke.  He  would  tell  a  good  story,  and  no  man  had 
a  keener  relish  for  it  than  he. 

It  is  said  of  Spurgeon  that  there  was  such  a  hearty  good 
humor  about  him,  and  over  all  and  through  all  such  an  atmosphere 
of  genuine  piety,  that,  though  he  had  convulsed  a  party  by  a 
lively  joke,  he  could  turn  at  once  and  say,  "  Now  let  us  have  a 
word   of  prayer,"   and  all  go    smiling   into    the    father's    presence. 


PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OF  D.  L.  MOODY  539 

It  would  seem  altogether  the  right  thing  to  do.  The  same  may 
be  said  of  Mr  Moody.  And  it  mattered  little  if  the  laugh  turned 
on  himself,  he  enjoyed  it  just  the  same. 

A  Good  Story 

Here  is  one  I  heard  him  tell  one  day  at  the  table.  First  speaking 
in  complimentary  terms  of  the  "  Mountain  Evangelist,"  Georo-e  O. 
Barnes,  of  Kentucky,  he  said  :  "  I  got  him  here  to  preach  once  many 
years  ago.  We  worked  hard  and  lived  on  bread  and  cheese.  One  night 
when  I  was  absent  he  preached  a  sermon  on  '  The  Devil  ! '  I 
insisted  that  he  must  repeat  it  for  my  benefit,  and  I  worked  up  a 
crowd  for  Saturday  night.  I  had  been  out  all  day  trying  to  raise 
money,  and  came  home  at  five  o'clock  tired  and  hungry.  In  addi- 
tion to  the  crackers  and  cheese  I  bought  some  bologna  sausage.  I 
never  tasted  anything  better  than  that  bologna,  and  I  just  ate  it 
until  I  didn't  want  any  more.  That  night  I  was  to  preside 
and  I  sat  behind  Barnes.  He  hadn't  been  preachino-  long- 
before  I  got  so  sleepy  I  could  not  hold  my  eyes  open  any 
way  I  could  fix  it.  I  got  out  a  pin  and  stuck  myself  with  it,  but 
nothing  would  do.  I  had  been  banging  the  people  a  good  deal  for 
going  to  sleep,  and  when  they  saw  me  it  was  all  they  wanted.  They 
would  not  keep  still.  Barnes  saw  something  was  the  matter.  He 
could  not  get  hold  of  them,  and  by  and  by  he  turned  and  looked 
at  me,  and  saw  what  was  up,  The  next  day  someone  said  some- 
thing to  Barnes  about  it,  he  said,  '  Well,  Moody  is  pretty  hard  to 
down;  but  last  night  the  devil  and  bologna  did  the  work  for  him,'  " 
It  was  comforting  to  hear  Mr.  Moody  say  that  he  also  put  people 
to  sleep  sometimes.  Well,  so  did  Paul,  and  may  be  you  have  also. 
If  you  are  a  preacher,  then  you  know  yourself. 

Mr.  Moody  was  a  great  general.     He  was  a  great  thinkei,  and 
planned  his  work  even  to   the   smallest  details.      He   looked   after 

29 


540  PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OF  D.  L.  MOODY 

the  food  and  rest  and  recreation  of  his  workers.  Even  his  car- 
riage horse  must  have  at  least  o^e  day's  rest  in  seven.  It  did 
not  matter  to  him  what  day  you  took  as  Sabbath  or  rest  day,  but 
it  must  be  one  in  seven.  He  was  the  only  one  who  did  not  rest  as 
much  as  he  should.  I  organized  a  strike  one  day,  and  informed 
him  that  if  he  did  not  take  a  day  in  seven  we  would  go  out  on 
a  strike  and  walk  the  streets  until  he  eave  in.  When  we  came 
from  our  work  that  night  we  found  he  had  rested,  and  I  told  him 
the  threatened  strike  was  having  good  effect. 

Always  Ready  for  a  Pleasant  Word 

Everybody  loved  him,  men,  women  and  children.  Although 
he  had  enough  on  his  mind  to  keep  a  dozen  men  busy,  he  so 
arranged  that  the  work  was  easily  divided  out,  and  he  stood  at  the 
helm.  But  he  was  always  ready  to  have  a  pleasant  word  with  man, 
woman  or  child  as  they  chanced  to  come  his  way.  Nothing  could 
be  more  enjoyable  than  his  evening  chats  with  the  workers  as  they 
came  in  from  their  fields  in  all  parts  of  the  city  to  give  an  account 
of  their  labors.  — a  picture  in  minature  of  the  time  when  we  shall 
all  oro  from  the  harvest  field  home  to  meet  our  orreat  Leader 
and  Commander,  and  tell  him  of  the  joys  and  sorrows,  the  trials 
and  triumphs  of  our  life  work  on  earth. 

Mr.  Moody  was  a  wise  level-headed  man.  He  had  a  great 
deal  of  common  sense.  You  could  hardly  get  an  off-hand  expres- 
sion of  opinion  from  him.  He  heard  what  others  had  to  say,  but 
reserved  his  judgment  until  all  the  facts  were  before  him  ;  then 
when  he  spoke  it  was  worth  hearing.  His  conduct  with  reference 
to  the  Congress  of  Religions  was  a  noticeable  instance.  When 
this  ecclesiastical  menagerie,  gathered  from  all  quarters  of  the 
globe,  made  its  appearance,  Mr.  Moody  was  asked  again  and  again 
to  take  part.      He  only  replied  that  he  had  his  hands  full  of  work, 


PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  Of  D.  L.  MOODY  541 

and  declined  to  nro.  When  it  seemed  to  some  of  us  that  our  Lord 
was  beHttled  and  disgraced  by  the  motley  crew  who  disported 
themselves  upon  the  platform  day  by  day  in  the  wonderful  "  Par- 
liament," we  suggested  that  we  should  attack  them  all  along  the 
line.  Mr.  Moody  was  very  emphatic  in  his  instructions.  "  Preach 
Christ,"  said  he,  "hold  up  Christ  ;  let  the  Parliament  of  Religions 
alone,  preach  Christ."  And  he  was  right.  The  many-colored 
bubble  burst,  and  went  to  thin  air.  It  will  hardly  be  known  in  his- 
tory. Christ  lives  and  reigns;  let  us  live  for  Him  and  preach  His 
blessed  Gospel. 

Mr.  Moody  Was  a  Fine  Business  Man 
Mr.  Moody  was  a  fine  business  man.  If  he  had  turned  his 
attention  to  earthly,  instead  of  heavenly  things,  he  would  have 
been  a  millionaire  many  times  over.  He  had  the  happy  faculty  of 
dispatching  business  with  great  ease  and  rapidity,  and  was  wise  in 
the  selection  of  his  assistants.  Over  each  department  there  is  a 
head,  whom  he  has  chosen  for  that  special  work,  and  the  work  goes 
on  well  through  and  through.  He  looked  after  the  smallest  matters. 
The  seating  of  the  congregation,  ventilation,  arrangement  of  the 
singers,  collections,  all  passed  under  his  observation  and  direction. 
He  was  a  great  advertiser.  He  was  one  of  the  children  of  light, 
who  have  learned  from  the  children  of  this  world.  The  newspapers, 
street  cars,  bill  posters  and  ticket  distributors  were  all  brought  into 
requisition.  One  night  when  he  was  going  to  preach  in  the 
Standard  Theatre — one  of  the  hardest  places — he  went  into  bar- 
rooms and  said,  "Moody  is  going  to  preach  in  the  theatre  to-night, 
come  in."  They  recognized  him  and  prepared  to  go.  The  results 
proved  his  wisdom.  Some  Christian  people  seem  to  think  that  it 
is  only  necessary  to  open  the  church  doors,  and  the  outside  world 
will  break  its  neck  trying  to  get  in.  Not  so.  The  most  attractive 
thintr  to  the  common  mind  is  a  circus.      Men,  women  and  children, 


543  PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OF  D.  L.  MOODY 

old  and  young,  white  and  colored,  .will  run  after  it,  and  spend  their' 
last  dimes  ;  and  yet,  when  the  circus  comes,  they  plaster  the  country 
and  paint  the  towns  red  with  their  advertisements.  Let  the  people 
of  God  learn  a  lesson. 

Mr.  Moody  had  a  great  deal  of  "  snap,"^ — -I  hardly  know 
what  else  to  call  it.  If  he  could  not  make  things,  like  his  Master, 
he  could  jnake  things  move,  and  that  comes  next  to  making 
them.  He  never  allowed  a  service  to  drag, — no,  not  for  an 
instant.  No  awkward  pauses,  nor  weary  moments  of  inordi- 
nate suspense.  He  went  right  on  from  one  thing  to  another  even 
unto  the  end.  I  have  gone  with  him  to  a  great  theatre  building, 
when  we  were  the  first  in  the  house,  except  the  employees  v/ho 
look  after  the  building.  As  soon  as  the  people  came  rushing  in, 
he  was  ready  to  start  the  singing.  Not  that  he  sang  himself. 
He  could  make  "a  joyful  noise  unto  the  Lord,"  and  as  a 
gentleman  remarked  when  asked  what  he  thought  of  his  singing, 
"  I  could  at  least  say  I  never  heard  anything  like  it."  He  would 
call  out  the  numbers  of  the  hymns,  and  he  well  knew  when  the 
singing  was  good.  Sometimes  he  would  call  for  one  part  of  the 
congregation  to  sing,  then  another,  then  all,  till  they  would  make 
the  house  fairly  tremble  with  the  thunder  tones  of  praise.  Then 
several  prayers,  then  his  own  sermon,  usually  from  twenty  to  thirty 
minutes,  and  then  close  with  prayer.  Perhaps  he  would  have  one 
or  two  sermons  more  of  similar  length,  as  was  often  the  case  in; 

Chicago  meetings. 

His  Great  Faith 

And  what  faith  he  had!  He  believed  in  the  Bible  from  "back 
to  back"  to  use  his  own  expression.  One  night  I  heard  him  preach 
on  the  ark.  "Come  thou,  and  all  thy  house  into  the  ark."  He 
said  some  infidel  perhaps  has  come  in  here,  and  will  say,  '  What 
does  Mr.   Moody  want  to  talk  about  that  for  ?     Nobody  believes- 


PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OE  D.  L.  MOODY  543 

the  ark  story  now.'  Well,  if  you  don't,  you  can't  believe  Christ. 
The  Son  of  God  endorsed  it.  'As  it  was  in  the  days  of  Noah,  so 
shall  it  be  at  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man.'  A  good  many 
preachers  these  days  are  trying  to  cut  certain  things  out  of  the 
Bible  ;  they  had  better  leave  the  pulpit.  They  are  doing  more 
harm  than  good.  Some  say,  '  I  don't  believe  the  fish  story  about 
the  whale  swallowing  Jonah.'  There  is  no  trouble  if  you  bring 
God  on  the  scene.  He  who  made  the  earth  could  make  a  whale  big 
enough  to  swallow  a  man  or  a  man  big  enough  to  swallow  a  whale." 
Mr.  Moody  believed  in  the  constant  presence  and  guidance  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  He  was  a  worker  together  with  God  in  every- 
thing. It  was  thrilling  to  hear  some  of  his  prayers  with  those  who 
worked  with  him.  On  Sunday  morning  he  would  call  to  God  for 
a  blessincf,  and  when  the  dav  was  done,  and  all  met  in  his  room, 
how  sweet  it  was  to  kneel  and  be  led  by  him  in  a  prayer  of  thanks- 
giving for  the  victories  of  the  day.  With  happy  hearts  we  said 
"Good  night,"  and  sought  our  rest,  rejoicing  that  we  had  been 
engaged  in  the  best  ancl  most  glorious  work  on  earth. 

A  Day  of   Help  and   Refreshing 

A  few  summers  ago,  while  preaching  in  New  London,  Conn.,  I 
concluded  one  Monday  morning  to  go  and  spend  a  few  hours  at 
Northfield,  without  letting  Mr.  Moody  know  it,  my  sole  purpose 
being  to  get  a  day  of  help  and  refreshing  from  the  services  he  was 
conducting  at  that  time.  It  was  August,  and  one  of  his  most 
important  conferences  was  in  session.  About  ten  o'clock  I  went  to 
the  auditorium,  and  took  a  seat  far  back  in  the  great  congregation, 
just  inside  the  door  in  fact,  and  enjoyed  one  of  his  delightful  and 
helpful  addresses.  He  seemed  unusually  well,  and  full  of  whole- 
some truth,  which  he  imparted  to  the  great  joy  of  his  large  audi- 
ence.   After  the  services  were  over,  I  stepped  outside  the  door  and 


544  PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OE  D.  L.  AWODY 

went  to  the  Northfield  Inn,  intending  to  get  my  dinner  and  go 
hack  to  the  auditorium  for  a  Httle  while,  then  take  the  five  o'clock 
train  for  New  London,  and  on  to  Baltimore  ;  when  after  dinner 
some  one  came  to  me  and  said  that  I  was  wanted  at  the  telephone. 

The  well-known  voice  of  Mr.  Fitt  greeted  me  with  the  startling 
information  that  Mr.  Moody  sent  his  regards,  and  said  he  wanted 
me  to  speak  on  the  platform  at  four  o'clock,  at  Roundtop  at  six, 
and  aofain  at  eisfht  in  the  auditorium.  He  would  not  listen  thougfh 
I  urged  that  I  must  leave  on  the  five  o'clock  train.  Finally,  however. 
he  made  a  compromise  by  Mr.  Moody  proposing  to  send  his  car- 
riage and  take  me  out  driving,  bring  me  back  to  the  auditorium  in 
time  for  the  services,  and  then  to  the  train  if  I  must  go.  To  one 
who  has  been  through  the  vales,  and  over  the  hills  of  beautiful 
Northfield,  it  is  needless  to  say  that  in  company  with  my  good 
friend,  Mr.  Fitt,  we  had  a  charming  drive,  and  a  little  after  four 
o'clock  made  our  way  to  the  auditorium.  When  we  entered,  Mr. 
Moody  called  me  to  the  platform  saying,  "  I  have  been  trying  to 
get  Dr.  Wharton  here  for  some  time.  He  is  here  now,  and  we  will 
keep  him."  Turning  to  Mr.  Stebbins,  he  said,  "  You  look  out  for 
that  side  of  the  platform,  and  I  will  take  care  of  this,  so  he  shall 
not  get  away  to-day."  He  then  announced  that  I  would  speak  at 
six  o'clock,  and  again  at  eight.  There  was  only  one  thing  to  do. 
and  that  was  as  all  others  who  came  within  his  reach  had  to  do, 
obey  his  commands;  and  it  was  always  for  the  best  that  we  did  it. 

The  six  o'clock  meeting  at  "  Roundtop,"  known  as  the  open 
air  meeting,  was  largely  attended,  and  to  me  exceedingly  enjoyable. 
Mr.  Moody  sat  beside  me  on  the  grass,  and  led  in  prayer  just  before 
the  address.  Elijah  on  Mount  Carmel,  pleading  with  his  God  was 
not  nearer  the  heart  of  his  Father  in  faith  and  acceptableness,  I  am 
sure,  than  he,  as  he  led  us  all  in  prayer  that  beautiful  evening. 
We  had  a  fine  meeting   that  night   in  the  auditorium   and   several 


PERSONAL  REMINISCENCES  OE  D.  L.  MOODY  545 

interesting  addresses  were  made,  after  which,  at  Mr.  Moody's  kind 
invitation,  we  went  to  his  house,  where,  in  company  with  a  number 
of  others,  a  social  hour  was  much  enjoyed. 

Mr.  Moody  was  not  easily  discouraged,  nor  unduly  elated. 
With  all  the  activity  of  his  great  soul,  there  was  still  a  calmness 
and  courage  characteristic  of  him  that  at  once  inspired  hope,  and 
kept  us  all  at  our  best  all  the  days  and  nights  of  toil.  It  was  my 
privilege  to  be  associated  with  him  in  the  Central  Palace  Hall,  in 
New  York  City,  where  thousands  of  people  assembled  every  day 
to  listen  to  his  preaching.  It  was  an  unusual  meeting  in  many 
respects,  beginning  in  the  early  morning  and  continuing  without 
intermission,  throughout  the  day,  until  ten  o'clock  at  night.  There 
were  many  interesting  conversions  in  those  meetings,  and  the  words 
which  went  abroad  throughout  the  land  must  have  accomplished 
great  things.  At  the  hotel  many  of  his  co-workers  were  enter- 
tained, and  the  brief  intervals  of  personal  intercourse  were  always 
heartily  enjoyed.  He  would  invite  us  to  his  room  in  the  morning 
where,  with  Mrs.  Moody  and  his  daughter  and  others,  he  engaged 
in  a  daily  worship  before  beginning  the  duties  of  the  day.  Hand- 
ing me  one  of  Henry  Drummond's  books  one  day  with  an  inscrip- 
tion in  his  own  hand  to  Mrs.  Wharton,  he  turned  the  leaves  rapidly 
and  said,  "  Look  at  this,"  and  showed  me  a  paragraph  where 
Drummond  speaks  of  passing  to  the  end  of  a  journey  of  life,  and 
then,  "  Isn't  that  good,  Wharton,  going  to  the  Father,  going  to  the 
Father."  He  has  gone  to  the  Father  ;  he  went  before  we  wanted 
him  to  go,  and  as  it  seems  to  us  the  burning  and  shining  light  was 
consumed  all  too  soon.  Still  the  Father  called,  and  when  he  went 
away,  he  said  we  must  not  call  him  back,  and  we  will  not.  He  can- 
not return  to  us,  but  we  may  go  to  Him,  and  in  that  blessed  land 
we  shall  meet  to  part  no  more.  Thanks  be  unto  God,  who  giveth 
us  the  victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

A  Month  with  Mr.  Moody  in  Chicago 

By  Rev.  H.  M.  Wharton,  D.  D. 

IT  was  a  magnificent  opportunity.  The  year  of  1893  would  find 
Chicago,  the  great  city  of  the  West,  crowded  day  by  day  with 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  people  coming  and  going  from  all 
parts  of  our  own  country,  and  from  every  nation  under  the  sun. 
Mr,  Moody  was  no  prophet,  but  he  was  quick  to  see  an  opening 
for  usefulness,  and  ever  ready  to  grasp  an  opportunity  for  doing 
good.  He  saw  before  him  an  occasion  similar  to  the  Pentecost  at 
Jerusalem,  but  on  a  much  larger  scale.  In  fact,  the  wonderful  event 
at  Jerusalem,  when  the  Spirit  descended  upon  the  assembled  disci- 
ples, and  they  went  forth  to  meet  and  preach  to  the  crowds  coming 
up  to  the  Holy  City  was  but  a  prophecy  of  that  which  came  to  pass 
in  the  city  of  Chicago.  Mr.  Moody  laid  his  plans  with  unusual 
wisdom  and  foresight.  When  the  World's  Fair  opened,  and  the 
people  poured  in  from  all  quarters  of  the  earth,  he  was  there  to 
meet  them  with  a  force  adequate  to  the  demands  of  that  teeming 
multitude.     A  brief  outline  of  this  plan  will  be  of  interest., 

Outline  of  His  Plan. 

Wherever  it  was  practicable,  he  grouped  the  churches,  includ- 
ing as  many  as  possible  in  the  arrangement  ;  the  members  were 
asked  to  come  together  in  one  of  the  largest  of  the  group,  and 
there  met  for  worship  and  work.  Services  were  held  at  night,  and 
visitors  who  were  staying  in  the  neighborhood  had  ample  notice 
that  they  might  attend  an  interesting  Gospel  meeting.  All  available 
546 


A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO  547 

public  places,  halls,  theatres,  and  other  buildings,  which  could 
be  used  for  public  worship,  were  secured  without  regard  to  cost. 
When  the  theatres  could  not  be  had  for  the  afternoons  and  even- 
ings, they  were  secured  for  noonday  services,  and  for  Sunday 
meetings.  The  people  of  the  great  city  seemed  not  only  willing 
but  anxious  to  do  everything  in  their  power  to  add  to  this  wonder- 
ful movement  for  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  and  for  the  salvation  of 
souls.  Perhaps  one  of  the  most  interesting  features  was  the  tent 
work.  This  may  be  better  understood  by  a  simple  description  of 
a  tent  service. 

Description  of  a  Tent  Service 

After  supper  in  the  men's  department  of  the  Bible  Institute, 
about  100  men  are  on  their  knees  for  a  few  minutes.  Brief, 
burning,  pointed  prayers  ascend.  God  is  counted  on  to  stand 
by  them  in  their  work.  Then,  rising,  they  scatter  to  mission 
and  tent,  going  in  some  cases  four,  five,  and  even  six  miles, 
each  w^ith  his  Bible  and  little  package  of  tracts,  those  contain- 
ing plenty  of  Scripture  being  preferred.  Meanwhile,  in  the 
Ladies'  Home,  fifty  young  women  have  been  making  similar  pre- 
parations. One  party  is  going  to  the  big  tent  on  Milwaukee 
Avenue,  where  Mr.  Schiverea  is  holding  meetings.  On  the 
street  cars  no  time  is  lost.  A  young  woman  opposite  speaks  to  the} 
tired  shop-girl  at  her  side,  opens  her  Bible,  and  points  her  to  Him 
who  said,  "  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  labor  and  are  heavy  laden, 
and  I  will  give  you  rest  ;  "  but  the  girl  must  get  off  at  the  next 
block.  She  slips  the  tract  "  God's  Word  to  You,"  into  her  hand 
with  a  kind  pressure,  and  asks  her  to  read  it.  A  pleasant  smile, 
and  a  Good  Night,  and  the  seed  is  sown.  Meanwhile,  the  young 
men  are  not  idle.  A  tract  is  handed  to  a  fellow-passenger — a  kind 
word  is  spoken — and  soon  they,  too,  are  talking  of  that  wonderful 


548  A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  Ii\  CHICAGO 

Saviour,  A  man  on  the  platform  has  secured  the  attention  of  the 
conductor,  who  seemed  under  conviction.  But  we  have  reached 
our  destination,  and  step  from  the  cars. 

Before  us  is  the  tent,  brilHantly  hghted.  We  enter,  and  over- 
head is  a  great  arch  of  canvass,  supported  by  three  centre-poles 
and  smaller  ones  about  the  sides — an  auditorium  accommodating 
1,300  people,  and  seated  with  canvas  benches. 

The  little  party  kneel  in  prayer  for  the  presence  and  power  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  Then  some  take  their  places  upon  the  platform, 
to  sing  the  Gospel,  some  stand  ready  to  welcome  and  seat  the  audi- 
ence, and  others  go  out  upon  the  streets,  with  cards  of  invitation 
to  bring  in  the  passers-by. 

From  our  seat  on  the  platform  we  watch  the  audience  come  In. 
First,  a  hesitating  group  of  ragged  little  ones,  then  some  young 
"  toughs,"  with  mischief  in  their  faces  are  passed  from  one  usher  to 
another,  who  will  keep  his  eye  upon  them.  Next  a  mother  with  a 
baby  in  her  arms,  a  laboring  man  in  gingham  shirt  and  no  collar, 
fathers  and  mothers  with  their  little  ones — so  they  gather — -largely 
an  audience  of  respectable  working  people,  for  this  is  the  character 
of  the  neighborhood  ;  but  the  "  tough  "  element  is  not  wanting. 
The  blue  coat  of  a  policeman  seen  at  the  door  makes  it  easy  to 
preserve  order.  The  police  of  Chicago  have  proved  good  friends 
of  this  work,  and  some  of  their  hearts  have  been  found  tender  as 
well  as  brave. 

A  Graphic  Address 

A  Gospel  hymn  opens  the  meeting,  and  how  these  people 
sing  !  A  solo  from  an  Institute  lady,  full  of  the  Gospel  message, 
more  hymns,  a  duet,  prayer,  and  the  evangelist  begins  to  speak. 
Tenderly,  lovingly  he  deals  with  the  people— unsparingly  he  deals 
with  their  sins.     The  trace  of  the  actor  still  lingers  in  his  graphic 


^  AfONTII   WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO  549 

illustrations,  largely  drawn  from  his  own  experience  ;  but  so  anxious 
is  he  that  all  be  to  the  glory  of  God  that  he  uses  these  with  more 
and  more  care  every  year. 

The  address  is  short,  and  a  hymn  of  invitation  to  Christ  is 
sung  by  the  same  soloist  as  before,  and  then  the  speaker  begins  to 
ask  those  who  wish  to  turn  from  a  life  of  sin  to  God,  to  rise.  "  Here 
and  there  they  rise  to  their  feet,  the  Institute  workers  marking  them 
carefully.  Then  the  leader  says  that  all  may  go  who  wish  to  do  so, 
but  that  a  short  after-meeting  will  be  held  for  those,  who  choose  to 
remain.  A  large  part  of  the  audience  stay,  and  the  workers  thread 
their  way  among  them,  sitting  down  by  those  who  have  risen,  and 
trying  from  the  Word  of  God  to  show  the  way  of  salvation,  often 
finding  among  those  who  linger,  deep  conviction  of  sin  without  the 
courage  to  rise  and  manifest  the  interest  felt.  At  a  late  hour  the 
party  are  once  more  on  the  cars,  singing  the  Lord's  songs  as  they 
take  the  long  ride  home. 

The  Working  Force. 

From  a  very  wide  acquaintance  all  over  the  Christian  world, 
Mr.  Moody  selected  his  helpers.  He  secured  men  of  experience, 
who  had  been  blessed  in  other  work  without  regard  to  af»-e,  denomi- 
nation or  education.  What  he  wanted  was  men  who  believed  the 
Gospel  with  all  their  hearts,  who  worked  under  the  power  of  the 
Spirit  of  God,  and  who  could  tell  plainly  and  simply  the  story  of 
redeeming  love.  Mr.  Moody  always  attached  fully  as  much  impor- 
tance to  the  singing  as  to  the  preaching  of  the  gospel,  and  in 
arranging  his  plans,  sought  out  the  best  Gospel  singers  he  could 
find,  whether  men  or  women,  and  applying  the  same  rules  to  them, 
as  to  the  preachers,  his  selections  were  along  the  same  line.  The 
great  purpose  of  his  heart  was  to  put  before  the  people  the  way  of 
life,  and  in  the  inquiry  meetings,  never  to  give  up  a  soul  while  it 


5_SO 


A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO 


yet  remained  in  darkness,  but  to  labor  on  until  the  seeker  had  found 
his  Saviour.  Without  comment  as  to  the  wisdom  of  his  plan,  the 
results  testified  in  unmistakable  terms,  that  it  was  the  one  way  tO' 
reach  and  save  the  many  who  came  under  the  preaching  of  the 
Word,  and  there  is  no  question  that  the  results  of  the  campaign  dur- 
ing the  World's  Fair  in  Chicago  were  far  more  extended  than  at 
Pentecost  in  Jerusalem,  for  while  hundreds  and  even  thousands 
returned  from  the  Holy  City  to  their  homes  with  a  blessing,  tens  of 
thousands  went  from  Chicago  to  all  parts  of  the  earth,  net  to  tell 
simply  of  the  wonders  of  the  World's  Fair,  but  the  glories  and  the 
joys  of  redeeming  love.  I  might  relate  many  incidents  of  this 
work  if  time  and  space  would  allow.  Let  it  be  said,  however,  that 
from  the  lowest  dens  of  vice  in  the  slums  of  the  city,  to  the  highest 
in  culture  and  position,  the  burning  words  of  the  evangelist  reached 
the  hearts  of  the  people,  whether  these  words  were  said  or  sung,  and 
the  whole  city  throbbed  with  the  blessed  impulse  of  Divine  power. 

My  Arrival  in  Chicago 

Many  months  before  the  beginning  of  the  campaign,  I  met 
Mr.  Moody  and  he  engaged  my  services.  During  the  spring  of 
1893,  while  holding  meetings  in  the  state  of  Texas,  a  telegram 
from  him  was  received,  announcing  a  number  of  appointments  for 
me  in  Chicago  on  the  following  Sunday,  according  to  our  agree- 
ment made  some  time  before.  I  had  planned  my  arrangements  to 
suit  so  that  my  meetings  were  closing  at  the  time  his  message  was 
received.  Leaving  immediately  for  Chicago,  I  arrived  on  Saturday 
night,  and  stopped  at  the  Palmer  House,  and  notified  Mr.  Moody 
that  I  was  on  hand  and  ready  for  duty. 

Sunday  morning  early,  I  was  informed  that  a  gentleman 
wished  to  see  me  in  the  office  of  the  hotel,  and  on  coming,  down  I 
met  a  handsome,  young,  blue-eyed  Irishman,  who  said  he  had  come 


A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO  551* 

to  take  me  to  preach  at  Hayniarket  Theatre.  It  was  my  first  meet- 
ing with  one  who  became  my  genial  and  fast  friend  at  that  time, 
and  such  has  been  our  relation  ever  since.  He  informed  me  that 
he  was  in  this  country  a  brief  time,  as  he  then  thoui^dit,  but  soon 
changed  his  mind,  for  he  succeeded  in  winning  the  heart  of  Miss 
Moody,  and  is  now  one  of  the  leading  workers  in  the  great  institu- 
tions which  were  established  by  her  father.  All  of  us  know 
Mr.  A.  P.  Fitt,  who  for  years  has  been  at  the  head  of  some  of  the 
most  important  branches  of  a  great  work. 

Mv   First  SekvicES  in  Chicago 

On  arrival  at  the  Haymarket  Theatre  that  Sunday  morning 
the  crowd  seemed  to  be  as  great  in  the  street  as  in  the  house,  and 
it  was  with  difficulty  that  I  could  get  to  the  platform,  where  Mr. 
Moody  greeted  me  most  cordially,  and  in  a  few  minutes  introduced 
me,  and  requested  me  to  speak.  Immediately  upon  conclusion 
of  my  sermon,  he  again  took  the  great  audience  in  hand,  and  turn- 
ing to  me  said,  ''  Please  go  across  to  the  Empire  Theatre,  and 
address  an  overflow  meeting  there.  I  will  join  you  in  a  few 
minutes."  It  was  quite  as  difficult  to  get  out  as  in,  but  I  soon 
found  myself  landed  on  my  feet  upon  the  stage  in  the  Empire 
Theatre,  where  the  people  were  already  joyfully  singing  under  the 
leadership  of  my  good  friend  George  C.  Stebbins.  In  due  time  Mr. 
Moody  came  o.n  the  platform,  having  spoken  in  the  Haymarket 
Theatre,  and  preached  in  the  Empire  Theatre  with  unabated  power 
and  zeal. 

The  meeting  over,  we  went  to  a  convenient  hotel,  where 
we  had  a  hasty  lunch,  and  from  there  up  Michigan  Avenue  to  Im- 
manuel  Church  at  three  o'clock  where  another  large  audience  was 
assembled,  and, we  spoke  again,  I  first,  Mr.  Moody  following.  The 
service  here  ended,,  and  with  but  little  rest  we  went  for  refreshment^ 


552  A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO 

then    made   our   way  along    State    Street   to  Central   Music  Hall, 

arriving  before  any  of  the  audience/    Soon   after  we  walked  upon 

the  platform,  Mr.   Moody  began   to   arrange   for  the  service.     The 

doors  were  opened,  the  people  came  pouring  in,   and  a  few  of  the 

singers  had  arrived  and   were  on  the  stage.     There  was  no  organist, 

and  no  leader  for  the  time,  but  our  ereat  evanorelist,  never  waiting 

a  moment  for  anything  when  there  was  work  to  do,  turned  to  me, 

and  said,  "Wharton,  can't   you    start  a  hymn  ?"      Taking  up  some 

familiar  hymn,  we  sang  while  the  people  crowded  the  building.      In 

a  few  minutes  the  choir  had  assembled,  the  leader  was  present,  and 

the  great  throng  joined  heartily  in  praising  God.      At  this  service, 

the  order   was  reversed,  Mr.  Moody  preaching  first,  and  I   am  sure 

that,  never  in  my  life,  have  I   listened  to  a  more  powerful  sermon 

than   was  preached  by  him  on  that  occasion   to  the  great  waiting 

throng. 

A   Most   Powerful  Sermon 

His  theme  was  "  Daniel,"  and  he  carried  us  by  the  won- 
derful power  of  his  imagination  through  all  the  scenes  of  that  re- 
markable life,  culminating  with  the  miraculous  delivery  from  the 
den  of  lions.  Who  can  have  forgotten  his  impersonation  of  the 
king,  as  looking  down  into  the  den  of  lions,  he  calls  to  Daniel,  "  O 
Daniel,  servant  of  the  living  God,  is  thy  God,  whom  thou  servest 
continually,  able  to  deliver  thee  from  the  lions?"  And  then  the 
reply  of  Daniel  that  comes  up  from  the  lions'  den,  "  O  king,  live 
for  ever. 

"  My  God  hath  sent  His  angel,  and  hath  shut  the  lions'  mouths 
that  they  have  not  hurt  me,  forasmuch  as  before  Him  innocency 
was  found  in  me  ;  and  also  before  thee,  O  king,  have  I  done  no 
hurt."  The  whole  audience  was  subdued  under  the  mighty  power 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  their  hearts  were  melted  in  sweet  fellow- 
ship and  love.      We  went   away  feeling   that  we  had  been   close  to 


A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO  553 

the  throne,  and  had   heard   and   seen   strange   things   that   blessed 

Sabbath  day. 

It  win  be  for  others  to  tell  of  his  great  achievements,  and  to 

account,  if  they  can,  for  the  secret  of  his  power  and  his  wonderful 

success.      To  me  the  great  personality  was  the  incarnation  of  love, 

and  although  he  might  at  times  impress   one  with  a  brusqueness 

which  was   almost   abrupt,  back  of  it  all  was   still   beating  a  great 

loving  heart. 

The  Chicago   Bible  Institute 

Our  headquarters  during  this  campaign  were  at  the  Bible 
Institute,  one  of  the  well-known  schools  already  referred  to  for 
teaching  and  training  in  the  Scriptures  and  evangelistic  work. 
This  Institute  was  the  outgrowth  of  many  years'  thought  on  Mr. 
Moody's  part  upon  the  needs  of  the  working  people  and  the  poor 
outcast.  He  saw  that  men  and  women  were  needed  to  eo  amone 
these  people  and  do  heart  to  heart  work,  so  that  by  the  Word  of 
God  and  the  power  of  the  Spirit,  they  might,  by  their  sympathy 
and  love,  bring  them  to  Christ  and  to  nobler  lives.  These  must 
be  searched  out  and  trained,  and  material  was  abundant,  but  it 
required  a  vast  deal  of  wisdom  in  one  to  select  the  proper  material, 
and  to  secure  workmen  to  prepare  this  material  for  successful  ser- 
vice. There  are  also  many  who  have  been  called  of  God  into  the 
Christian  work  at  a  period  of  life  too  late  to  take  a  regular  college 
course,  but  who  could,  by  the  help  of  the  Bible  Institute,  be  quali- 
fied for  great  usefulness  ;  and  then  there  are  persons  who  wish  to 
devote    their   time    to   Gospel    work    while    pursuing    some    other 

calling. 

Its  Aim  and  Method  of  Work 

It  was  to  meet  all  these  demands  that  the  Institute  was 
established.  It  has  sought  to  send  out  men  and  women  who  have 
a  thorough  consecration,  intense  love  for  souls,  a  good   knowledge 


554  A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICAGO 

of  God's  Word,  and  especially  how  to  use  it  in  leading  them  to 
Christ,  untiring  energy,  and  the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The 
method  of  training  is  by  the  study  of  the  Bible  and  music,  and 
actual  work  in  leadinsf  men  to  Christ.  The  Institution  is  located 
in  the  heart  of  Chicasfo,  and  has  from  its  besfinnine  been  under  the 
management  of  Rev.  R.  A.  Torrey,  a  man  in  every  way  qualified 
for  this  important  work.  When  I  reached  the  Institute  the  Monday 
following  the  day  I  have  been  describing,  they  sent  me  to  a  room 
.which  was  to  be  my  home  for  the  next  month.  As  I  entered  this 
pleasant  little  "  Prophet's  Chamber,"  I  looked  around  for  pictures, 
•jbut  discovered  only  one  little  motto  on  the  wall,  neatly  framed, 
3.nd  these  were  the  simple  words,  "  Get  right  with  God."  My  first 
impulse  was  to  kneel  down  and  ask  God's  blessing  that  I  might  be 
right  with  Him,  and  that  He  would  use  me  in  the  work  upon  which 
it  had  been  my  privilege  to  enter.  The  very  atmosphere  of  this 
place  is  one  of  worship  and  work.  You  can  hear  the  songs  of 
praise  at  almost  any  hour  of  the  day.  Little  meetings  are  held  in 
the  rooms,  or  a  special  sermon  or  lecture  in  the  chapel,  and  sweet 
social  seasons  when  they  are  gathered  around  the  tables  in  the 
dining-rooms,  or  in  Mr.  Moody's  great  reception  room.  It  was  al- 
ways sweet  and  restful  during  the  hours  between  the  times  of  actual 

service. 

Thousands  Saved 

The  Institute  is  a  hive,  where  the  workers  are  coming  and 
going,  the  difference  being  the  bees  go  out,  gather  their  honey  and 
bring  it  home,  while  here  the  honey  is  gathered  and  carried 
abroad,  where  it  is  dispensed  to  those  who  will  receive.  The 
workers  went  forth  every  day  and  gave  what  they  had  gotten,  to 
return  in  the  evening  all  full  of  the  sweet  consolation  that  "  It  is 
rnore  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive." 


A  MONTH  WITH  MR.  MOODY  IN  CHICACrO  555 

I  count  it  one  of  the  grreatest  blessin^i^s  of  my  life  to  have  parti- 
cipated in  the  great  battle  among  the  multitude  that  filled  Chicago 
during  the  most  successful  Exposition  the  world  has  ever  known; 
and  when  the  glorious  end  shall  come,  I  believe  it  will  be  found 
that  during  this  period  of  six  months'  work  thousands  were  saved 
by  the  preaching  of  Christ  in  these  meetings,  and  not  only  this,  but 
that  Christians  from  all  parts  of  the  earth  went  back  to  their  homes 
strengthened  and  blessed,  clothed  anew  with  powers  of  the  unseen 
world,  to  work  for  the  Kingdom  of  God  more  earnestly  and  faith- 
fully than  ever  before.  And  besides  all  this,  the  evil  influences 
that  were  counteracted,  and  the  good  influences  that  went  forth,  will 
bless  the  world  to  the  end  of  time.  God  be  praised  for  this  true 
believer  and  consecrated  Christian  man,  who,  like  his  Master, 
loved  the  world,  and  gave  himself  for  it,  and  now,  having  finished 
his  work,  has  passed  through  the  gates  of  glory,  and  wears  a  crown 
of  righteousness  and  victory  forever. 


V 


s 


DATE  DUE 


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Sv:?* 


GAYLORD 


PRINTED  IN  USA. 


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